This Old, New World
by ZombieKillerCass
Summary: What if Nate wasn't the only survivor from Vault 111? Nate is on a mission to find his missing son while Natalie must come to accept this new life she has been thrust into. As they journey she can't help but cling on to what once was and what could have been. Can she find the will to survive in this old but new world? *Rating may change in the future. Eventual romance.*
1. Chapter 1: Time and Place for Everything

Chapter 1: Time and Place for Everything

Natalie sat at the end of the bed, her stomach turning in nervousness as Jeff slowly kissed her. She tried to focus on him, on his lips pressing lightly on hers, but all she could think of was how much trouble she would be in when her father saw the man with her. Natalie and Jeff had been dating for about two years now. He had asked her hand in marriage one romantic night at dinner, much to her excitement and slight dismay. Her family was very strict about their lifestyle. Her dad a general, he wanted simply the best for his daughter. She feared that the brown haired, blue-eyed beauty sitting next to her wasn't going to make the cut. Natalie loved her family and feared that she would disappoint them. She heard a door shut downstairs. She stopped kissing Jeff, slightly pushing him away.

"What is it, sweetheart?" He looked at Natalie, concerned, clearly not hearing the shuffling feet below them. He tilted his head slightly. When he did this he reminded her of one of the greaser boys from an old romance movie. He even dressed like him.

"I think it's my dad," She sighed and placed her hand gently over his. "I know you want to properly introduce yourself, but maybe we should wait a while?"

Jeff huffed a little, his blue eyes looking sad. "Nat, I know you're worried what your dad might think of me, but you're a grown woman. And while his approval would be a great way to start our life together, you can't live your life based solely off his opinions." He stood up, physically preparing himself for the meeting. "You said you would introduce us and now the opportunity is here. So are you ready?"

Natalie groaned a little. "Come on, you can just sneak out the window… like when we first met. Remember? My eighteenth birthday when you brought me that giant teddy bear." She let out a small laugh, "You had only known me a month and you were already sneaking into my room."

"Hey, I didn't want to waste my time. It'd be easy to lose a catch like you." He gave a flashy smile. She felt her heart beat a little faster. She always had a hard time deciding whether it was his eyes or his smile that first won her heart over.

"NATALIE!?" Her father bellowed in his military voice. She had no idea what he could have been so upset about, unless he had seen Jeff's motorcycle. "DOWNSTAIRS, NOW!" He shouted, barely muffled by the closed door and distance.

Natalie tucked her hair behind her ear, a nervous habit she had developed at a young age. "I'm coming, dad." She tried to say it loudly but wondered if he could even hear her. She looked in the stand-up mirror as she walked towards the door. She took a long look at herself, wondering if she would ever look, or even feel, like a grown woman. "Nineteen years old and I've still got the face of a fifteen year old high schooler." She sighed solemnly as she looked over her features. Dark brown hair down past her shoulders. Large hazel eyes that verged on the color green. She was still as short as her fifteen year old self. Jeff stood about a foot taller than her.

"Well, babe. At least you won't have to worry about your looks as you get older." Jeff said jokingly, his hand gently touching the side of her waist. Her dress felt soft under his hand. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, his skin felt smooth. A fresh shave. "Let's go."

As she walked down the stairs, her knees felt wobbly from her nerves. She felt her hands shaking while she heard him beginning to yell again "Natalie! Come down stairs now!"

"Dad, I need to talk to you," She quickly began. "This-"

"Not now, Natalie. You need to pack your bags. We're heading out." He already had a suitcase on the table, packing up clothes.

"What's going on?" Natalie looked with wide eyes. Her father didn't even notice the boy standing behind her. "Is it about the war?"

He looked at her quickly, doing a double take as he finally noticed Jeff. "Who is this?" He looked slightly angered, but still nervous about whatever had him packing his bags in the first place.

"Sir, my name is Jeffrey Lamb," He swiftly reached out his hand. Natalie's father slowly reached out and shook it. "I know these are very strange circumstances."

"Natalie Graham you have two minutes to explain," He shot her a stern look. His jaw was clenched, his stance stiffened.

"Dad, I've been dating Jeff for a while now," Her father's eyebrows perched up in shock, "and he's asked me to marry him. I said yes, dad. Jeff's a good guy so-"

"Listen Natalie, under normal circumstances I would be giving you a lecture." He turned back to his suitcase, zipping up the last of his personal items. "Hell, how did you even- Well, that's not important right now. Listen, kid. Jeffrey…" He held his breath for a second. "Just go home to your family."

Jeff looked slightly confused, but spoke out "Sir, I know this may be shocking. I understand if you're even upset but I love your daughter. I'm not going to leave her-"

"No, you will leave my daughter. You will go and get your family and you better hope to God you have a spot saved in one of those vaults."'

Jeff opened his mouth, letting out a sound of anxiety. "Wh-What? Sir are you telling me that the bombs-"

"All the buttons have been pressed. Worldwide, bombs are dropping. They estimate about forty-five minutes until everything goes to shit." He looked completely serious, his jaw still clenching.

"No, no that can't be… That…" Natalie tried to find her words.

"Get your bags now, Natalie." He began to walk outside to the car.

Natalie rushed upstairs, Jeff following her closely. "This has to be a dream- a nightmare!" She slammed her door behind her.

"Nat, get your bags. You heard your father." Jeff looked at her, tears at the edge of his eyes. "You're gonna get out of here. You're gonna be safe."

Natalie felt something tug at her heart. She noticed her own tears that were now beginning to pour down her cheeks. "Jeff do you have somewhere-"

"Don't worry about me. My dad knows a place we can get to-"

"Then you need to go now, so you have enough time to get there." Natalie grabbed at his forearms, his leather jacket felt cool under her palms.

He turned his head slightly to the side, as if looking over his shoulder. She saw his throat move as he swallowed roughly. "I don't have anywhere to go, but I'm not gonna let you sit here with me and die." He turned to her closet, grabbing a couple of her dresses out and folding them into her bag.

"N-No I don't want to…" She felt herself gasping now as she wept. "Please don't leave me. Come with me. M-Maybe we can convince them to let you in. We… We can-"

"Nat, no. We both know they won't let me in. If you have the chance to live I'm not going to let you throw it away on me." He grabbed her shoulders, holding her while she sobbed. "I love you more than anything in this world. If I let you die here, even if it were with me. I would die miserable. I want you to live. Be happy when all this stuff is over…" He lifted her chin, wiping her eyes gently. "I love you Natalie Graham." He gave a long kiss, a goodbye kiss. She felt her heart ache. She thought about the short time they spent together. She thought about all the time they would never get to spend together. The family they'd never have. The house they'd never move in to. The world that would never exist anymore.

He helped her finish packing her bags and even carried them downstairs. Her father, who was now finishing up her mother's bags, gave a questioning look but didn't say anything. She looked at her father and shook her head. He nodded slightly, seeming to understand why he hadn't left. She followed Jeff out to the car.

He turned to her after he set her luggage in the trunk of the car. "Listen, I… I'm going to my dad's shop. I'm going to tell him what's going on and maybe we can find a place to hole up in. Just know I might not make it out of this."

Natalie felt the tears welling up again, but tried her best to hold them back. "Jeffrey, please. Try to find somewhere. I'll come find you when this is over."

He pulled her in to a tight embrace. They held each other for what felt like an eternity. Her father interrupted the scene, clearly anxious to get moving. "It's time to go. It was nice to meet you Jeffrey, I hope the best to you and your family."

Natalie gave Jeff one last look as he got on his motorcycle and sped off. Her father began to drive in the same direction, but he was already gone. After about ten minutes of awkward silence he cleared his throat. "How long?"

She looked at her father, her mouth felt dry. Her eyes puffy from crying. "It was going to be a year and nine months November fifteenth." She rubbed the back of her hand against her forehead. A headache was beginning to set in.

"Where did you two meet?" He asked softly.

"Dad, please. I don't want to talk about my doomed fiancé." She felt her voice catch in her throat.

"I was just wondering… You kept it a secret for so long." He began to pull into a small town called Sanctuary Hills. "If you said yes to him, he must have been an outstanding young man."

Natalie wiped the fresh tears that began sliding down her cheeks. She wondered if he would have thought the same had she introduced him sooner. "He was… Is a great man. You know he helps his dad down at that Red Rocket station we passed?" She let out a small laugh. "He's actually the co-owner. He could fix any car within a day or two as long as he had the parts." She found herself rambling and quickly stopped. "How did you get this vault, dad?"

"Your mother made me fill out all the paper work about a week ago. Good thing, too." He gave a tight smile. "She's already checked in for the vault. Vault 111." He parked the car on the side of the road. "Let's get going, sweetie."

They walked quickly up the pathway leading to the Vault-Tec billboard. As they reached the gate they began to hear sirens and multiple helicopters. They looked back down the hill and saw people rushing out of their houses. Some getting in their cars to drive off, some running to neighbor's houses. Most of them were running towards the hill with their own luggage and suitcases. Natalie turned back to see her father walking even quicker up the hill. They made it to the gate and had their names checked off the list.

They reached a platform where her mother stood, she stretched out her arms and pulled them both in for a close hug. "I was so worried. It felt like an eternity for you two get here." Her mother gave her father a quick kiss and then gave Natalie a small kiss on the cheek.

A couple more families joined them on the platform, all of them looking nervous and fidgeting. Natalie looked around and saw a family running up, a baby in the arms of a woman. Natalie looked back at her family her eyes beginning to fill with more tears. Then she saw it, saw something falling from the sky. Suddenly, a bright flash and the delayed sound of destruction.

"JUST HOLD ON!" She heard someone yell.

"Now! Send them down now!" A faint voice screamed as the platform began to shift lower in to the ground.

Everything began to shake. Natalie reached out and grabbed on to her father. "Hold on to me, sweetie. It's ok. Everything is ok!" He reassured them. Natalie looked up, watching harsh winds carrying debris above them as another platform closed above their heads.

Just as quickly as everything happened, it was all over. Silence. Only the screeching of the metal platform as it reached the bottom of the tunnel. Behind the fence stood people dressed in Vault-Tec apparel. Natalie felt her senses go numb. She imagined Jeff watching the same bomb fall from the sky. Helplessly standing out in the open, no protection from the radiation wave that began to wipe out buildings. Crushing everything in it's path. Destroying innocent people with it's heat. Before she knew it she was standing in a hallway.

"Ma'am, if you could please put on your vault suit and step in the decontamination chamber." The Vault-Tec worker handed her the blue jumpsuit that had slipped from her fingers and onto the floor.

"Yes, of course." She said hoarsely and grabbed the suit. She quickly changed, trying to ignore all the other bodies present in the room.

"Natalie, everything is going to be ok." Her mother gave her a worried look. "We're all together, safe and sound." She placed a comforting arm around Natalie. She didn't even tell her about Jeff. She wondered how her mother would have felt about him. Would she think that she picked a good man to say yes to?

"I know, mom." She gave her mother a soft, sad smile.

She stepped into the pod, the metal and plastic felt extremely cold against the thin layer of the jumpsuit. She breathed heavily, feeling cramped and nervous. She heard a couple of the representatives talking. "Six years, right?" One of them nodded. "Life support should hold them. Shit, these things can keep them frozen for centuries." Natalie was confused for a moment. _What the hell are they talking about?_ Then her eyes widened in fear. She felt the cold, almost painful air filling the pod. She gasped, squeezing her eyes shut as everything began to fade from her vision. Everything felt still. Frozen.


	2. Chapter 2: Good Old Days

Chapter 2: Good Old Days

Natalie dreamed about Jeff. The first time she saw him standing next to the juke box in the diner. She gave a shy smile and he flashed a brilliant, bold smile. Her heart felt like a melting candle as he would look away, only to meet her eyes a split second later and he would flash that smile again. Jeff covered his mouth, almost nervously as he chatted among his friends. She wondered if they were in a gang, all of them wearing black leather jackets over casual clothes.

Natalie looked away from him a moment to lean in closer to her friend sitting across from her. Melody Sanchez, or Melly as everyone called her. She had dark tan skin and eyelashes longer than any other girl she had met. "Hey who's that cutie over at the box?" Natalie spoke softly as if someone could be listening in.

Melly turned around for a second and quickly looked back at Natalie. "No idea, Natty" she smiled playfully at her. She tried to push a curl neatly back into her bun as she spoke. "Maybe you should go talk to him, he seems interested."

"No way, dad would kill me." Natalie said with wide eyes.

"Geez, you don't have to make it serious. Just go have fun." She said. "While you're at it ask if one of his friends is available too. It's been a while since I've had some fun of my own."

"Melly, you were with Matthew just last week." Natalie rolled her eyes and leaned back into her seat.

"So what? Matthew is nice, but he doesn't know how to handle himself around a woman, if you know what I mean." She took a sip from her pop sitting on the table.

Natalie gave an exaggerated gasp. "How could you, Mel?" She leaned back in. "Was he a virgin like everyone expected?"

Melly nodded her head slowly and then busted out in laughter. "Poor kid tried his best, though!" She sighed, thinking back on the experience. "So when are you gonna pop your cherry?"

"Oh, get out of here." Natalie pushed her hair behind her ear, nervously. "I don't even know who- or even where- I would be able to do _that_." She placed her chin in her palms.

"Well, now this is just what I would do. I would go over to mister handsome at the jukebox, ask him to dance and then meet him in his car."

"He probably doesn't even have a car."

"Heartbreaker like that _has_ to have a car."

Natalie looked back at the handsome brown-haired boy. He was looking away now, focused on the conversation he was having with his friends. She felt her gut twisting and a blush creeping across her entire face. "I mean he is cute…" She thought for a moment. _I am a senior… It's not like I'm going to live forever…_ She gulped and then gave a quick nod to Melly, who gave her a reassuring nod back. Natalie had been wanting to give herself up for a while now, but wanted to make it special. A year before she came extremely close to doing so with her then boyfriend. They were in his room, kissing, trying to get things started when there was tapping at the window. His friends were telling him about a cool party a couple blocks down. After an argumentative discussion about her boyfriend leaving to go to the party they decided maybe they should break it off. _I still can't believe he chose a stupid party over sex…_ To be fair, however, he probably had sex at the party that night.

Natalie quickly approached the boy, who was way taller than her, and opened her mouth to speak. No words came out. "I… Need to use the jukebox…" She panicked. He didn't say anything as he stepped aside. All his friends stayed quiet, waiting for her to leave, she guessed.

She reached for her purse and realized she forgot it at the table with Melly, who was watching her with a confused expression. "Need some money?" The blue eyed boy leaned closer to her. She blushed, nervous from how close he was standing.

He slid the money into the machine, his eyes on her the majority of the time. "Thanks…" She said in a hushed tone, though this wasn't on purpose.

She flipped through the songs and decided to put it on The Wanderer before slowly turning to walk away. "Miss." She heard a voice behind her. She looked over her shoulder, hoping she might look like one of those pin up models that looked over their shoulder sensually as opposed to a scared animal using their own body for protection. "You seem to have forgotten something…"

She turned on her heel, moving her hair behind her ear. "What's that…?"

"Well, you've forgotten to tell me your name." _Smooth, did he use that on all the women he met?_ "You also forgot to ask me about that dance…" _Shit._ Natalie felt her face burning red, she was about to run off in embarrassment. Had he heard the whole conversation? About how she planned to _do the deed_ with him?

"Well, that's because…" Natalie spoke before even thinking of the words she would be saying. "A gentleman should always ask the lady." She felt herself stepping closer to him, a knot in her throat form being so nervous. She was acting completely out of character, but it worked.

"Those are some old ideals," he said as he stepped closer to her, pushing himself off the jukebox casually, "but lucky for you, I am an old fashioned romantic."

He reached his hand out to her, she peeked quickly at his friends who were all grinning. "Did they help you think of this?" She said as she reached out to grab his hand, her heart pounding in his chest.

He shrugged lightly and flashed another smile at her. She could see a blush of his own creeping his cheeks. "Maybe, but I can't say that I didn't add my own flair to it."

"At least you're honest." He walked her to the middle of the dance area, slowly dancing to the fast paced song.

"You have terrible taste in romantic music." The boy said sarcastically.

"Well, maybe I'm not trying to be romantic. Maybe I'm trying to make this quick and painless." She said, trying to figure out if he heard the other half of the conversation. He had to have, if he heard Melly suggest that she dance with him.

"Oh, that stuff…" He sighed. "Can't say I know much of it. Might be a disappointment like poor little Matthew." He flashed her another smile.

She sighed, feeling her false confidence beginning to melt away as it was replaced with embarrassment. "Well, you're telling me about your… _experiences_ , but you still haven't given me a name."

"J. Anthony Lamb." He said, sounding a little disappointed at the sound of it. "Feel free to call me Tony, short for Anthony." _He must not like his first name._

"What don't like your first name?" She said sarcastically to him. "What is it…? Jeffrey?" She guessed. "James?" Natalie shrugged her shoulders at him playfully.

The song was coming to an end. "Tony works for me, suits my character." He smiled again, a small chuckle. "Fits my 'greaser' demeanor."

"If that's what your friends tell you." Natalie gave him a small smile. He ended the dance with a final spin. "Well, my name is Natalie Graham."

"No middle name?" He looked questioningly. They began to walk back to the table where Melly sat, now talking with a boy who must have randomly approached her.

"No, parents never gave me one." She said, reaching for her purse. "Ready to head out, Melly?" Melly looked up quickly and grabbed her own purse. The boy began to walk away.

"Heading out already? It's barely eight o' clock." Tony stepped slightly closer.

"Well, you said yourself that you might be a disappointment, so… I would rather not waste time." She began to walk away with Melly who looked at her with an expression that screamed _what are you doing?_

"W-Well wait. Isn't there anything I can do to make you stay?" Tony followed directly behind them.

"Well…" She kept walking until they were outside of the diner. "Tell me your first name…" She said. "And maybe I'll stay."

Tony sighed an exasperated sigh. "Jeffrey," he mumbled. "You got it right on the first try…" He rubbed the back of his neck.

'"You're lying." She squinted her eyes at him, trying to read his expression.

"Honest, Natalie." He looked at the dirt ground before looking back up at her, making direct eye contact. "My dad calls me Jeff for short…"

"Jeff…" Natalie tried saying it, looking as though she were trying to decide if she liked it. Jeff kicked at the dirt a little. "What do you think, Mel?"

"I think that it is getting late, and some of us have other things we would rather be doing…" Melly stepped away from them and began walking down the sidewalk to head to her house.

"We can walk you home, Miss." Jeff said, looking concerned.

"She lives right across the street." Natalie said just as Melly looked both ways before crossing over.

"How convenient." Jeff smiled slightly. "So what 'other things' are we going to be doing?"

Suddenly Natalie felt herself jerked from the dream, warmth painfully creeping across her body. Her lungs felt like they were on fire as she breathed. She looked around, trying to figure out what was happening. "H…He…?" She tried to speak, her voice too hoarse. She slammed her fists against the glass. She tried to look around but could barely see anything through all the frost on the pod's glass. _Why aren't they letting us out? Has it been the six years already?_ She looked down at her own body, her hands were practically blue. She could hear some shuffling in the pods around her. Then screaming from another room. Natalie slammed her fists on the glass again, but stopped when she heard gunshots. _What the hell? What is going on?_


	3. Chapter 3: Moving Out

Chapter 3: Moving Out

Natalie's pod door flung open. She hadn't even noticed she had been frozen again. She tried to step out of the pod, only to fall weakly to the ground. She felt her teeth chattering, her senses kicking in as she felt the extreme cold crawl on her skin. She attempted to speak, her throat making a cracking noise before she whispered the words "Is someone… there?"

There was some noise in one of the other rooms. She tried to stand, but her legs were too shaky. Letting out a cough she tried to clear her throat, she tried to speak again, this time more clearly. "Help… Please help…" Standing slowly, she turned and faced her father's pod directly to the right of hers. "Dad?" She whispered and touched the glass. It looked as if he was in the process of defrosting, but he kept completely still. Natalie slammed her fist into the pod, crying cold, painful tears. "No, dad… No!" She looked at the control panel next to the pod and flipped the switch on it. The pod creaked open and she reached out to her father. He was still freezing cold, but his skin was soft under her touch.

"Life support failure" a robotic voice said over an intercom. The sound faded in and out behind the sound of buzzing sirens.

Natalie stared at her father for a moment, then stepped in front of her mother's pod. She looked at the glass, her mother motionless behind it. She dropped her eyes to the floor, allowing herself a moment to weep. _I'm all alone… My family… They're gone…_ She looked towards the ceiling, squeezing her eyes shut. Hoping this was all a dream, hoping she would be waking up in her bed. _This can't be… This isn't real… This isn't…_

Suddenly, an automatic door opened. Natalie jerked towards it, she turned to see who had opened it. Another person in a vault suit. He didn't step towards her, but he looked panicked. "Who are you?" His voice echoed slightly in her ears.

"Nat… Natalie…" She tried to speak clearly, her voice still adjusting to the air around her.

"Did you see people come through here, with a baby?" He stepped towards her slowly. "Wearing lab coats or something…?" He looked terrified, but determined.

Natalie took a step back, seeing a police baton in his hand. She took a moment to look at the man before answering. "No… I thought I was the only one… How long have we been in here…?" Natalie felt her eyes on the verge of tears but tried to hold them back. She thought again of Jeff, if he survived he would be waiting for her somewhere out there.

"I don't know. Some people took my son. He's just a baby…" He trailed off, swallowing hard. Natalie remembered him. He and his wife barely made it to the platform in time.

"I heard them say we would be in here about six years… Do you think that people survived out there?" She said in a hopeful tone.

"I'm not sure, but there's only one way to find out." He began to walk away.

 _Should I go with him?_ "Wait!" She reached a hand out as she stepped towards him. "My family… They're gone… Can I follow you back? I just… I have somewhere I need to go…" Natalie was wary of even speaking with strangers, but seeing as she had no other hope she decided to give him some trust.

He looked at her, skeptical of taking the stranger with him. "Are you from Sanctuary, too?"

"No, but I think someone is waiting for me at the Red Rocket stop…" She said, not looking him in the eyes. "Please… It's not far. I just… I'm scared to go alone."

He thought for a moment. "I'll take you… but I have to find my son as soon as possible." He turned quickly, walking out the door he entered from.

Natalie silently followed him, trying to keep up with his pace. Her lungs were still tight in her chest, trying to adjust to their new found life. He led her through a corridor, but stopped as soon as he reached some stairs. He readied the baton. She looked around his side to see giant cockroaches crawling across the floor. "What the hell are those?" She yelped, taking step back.

"Radiation must have gotten to them," He said as he swung the baton down and crushed one of the creatures. "Must have crawled in when those people came and took my baby." He grunted, killing another roach quickly.

They entered the overseer's office. A skeleton lay sprawled across the floor. A pistol on the desk. "Is that…?" She felt herself tense up. _Why is it a skeleton? Did all the people in here die?_

"I guess we've been stuck in here a while." The man grabbed the gun off the desk and then quickly looked through the computer. "You should probably take this firearm." He began to hand it to her.

Natalie froze. She had been around guns her whole life. Hell, her father was a general in the military. She had never actually fired a weapon herself, however. "I don't know how…" She said, almost ashamed. Her father never wanted her to rely on guns, knowing the emotional expense that comes with them.

"Well, I'll keep it for now… Something tells me you're going to need to learn to shoot one in this… New world." He pressed a couple buttons on the computer and the hydraulic door puffed open.

They walked through the hallways, fighting off more radroaches, she decided to call them, until they came to the entrance. Everything looked different. More skeletons were spread across the floor. _Why are they all skeletons?_ She thought to herself as the man reached towards the control panel. "Damn…" He pushed the button a couple more times. "I guess we need one of those pip boys." He mumbled.

"There's one right there." Natalie pointed to a skeleton wearing a lab coat.

The man reached down and slowly grabbed the computer-like device. He snapped it onto his wrist.

"That's gross…" Natalie scrunched her nose in disgust, imagining how long the machine must have sat on the man's arm while he decayed into bones.

"Well, he doesn't really need it anymore." He said sarcastically while he plugged a wire into the control panel's slot. "Here goes nothing." He slammed his fist on the button, the vault door immediately began screeching to life. Stale air rushed into the room, the sound of buzzers began to fill the room as the door shifted. They stepped onto the same platform that had lowered them into the vault. The platform slowly began to rise up.

"Sir… Your wife didn't make it?" She said quietly, immediately regretting the question.

"No…" He looked down for a moment before making eye contact with her. "She was killed by those bastards that took my son." He clenched his fist. "I need to find them, what if they hurt him?"

Natalie wasn't sure what to say. She would offer help, but she had her own worries. She also feared she wouldn't be much help if killing were involved with the search. "I hope you find him, sir." She looked at her hands.

"Nate." He said as the panel opened up above their heads. "My name is Nate."

She nodded silently. When they reached the surface the sun was set high in the sky. Both of them squinted in the painful sunlight, eyes adjusting to the brightness. "Jesus…" Natalie whispered in amazement and shock. "Everything is… Gone." She felt her eyes watering, although she wasn't sure if that was due to the sunlight or her emotions.

Nate didn't say anything as he turned around and began running down the hill to Sanctuary. Natalie quickly followed after him, trying to keep up. They crossed the small bridge that led into the city. Nate looked around for a moment, orientating himself. "Follow me." He ordered her as he walked swiftly down the street. He approached a robot, a mister handy.

The robot whirred for a moment before speaking. "As I live and breathe." It appeared to make a gasping sound. "It's… It's really you…"

"Codsworth… You're still here." Nate smiled. "So that means others could still be alive…"

Natalie watched as they spoke for a moment. He explained to Codsworth the situation, how his wife had been murdered and how his son was missing. Codsworth tried to find a rational explanation in his system. "It's worse than I thought…" he hummed a moment. "You're suffering from hunger-induced paranoia… Being two hundred years late to dinner will do that to you."

Natalie's eyes widened, she jumped into their conversation. "Wait, two hundred…" She trailed off. "That's not right… No that can't be…"

"A little over two hundred and ten, give or take." He said cheerily.

"That's impossible…" Nate shared her shocked expression.

Natalie began to walk away, feeling something twist in her stomach. She leaned against a nearby light post and leaned over, suddenly dry heaving as she felt the nervousness turn to nausea. Nate walked up to her, leaning near her, but not touching her.

She heaved a couple more times, nothing coming out of her empty stomach. She coughed, her head feeling dizzy, her heart beating in her ears. "Two hundred…" She groaned out, tears beginning to fill her eyes. She knew for sure Jeff would no longer be around. Hell, he probably didn't even survive the bombs falling. She had hoped there was a chance, though, and now all that hope had been crushed.

"Natalie…?" He extended a hand to help her stand up. "Why don't you sit in my house…? Codsworth and I are going to look around sanctuary…"

She cautiously took his hand, everything beginning to feel numb as her panic subsided. "Ok…" She said with a dry voice.

Natalie stared at the aged television set. She tried to imagine the house before all the destruction. _Two hundred years…_ She looked around the room, sitting silently on the couch. _This home held up nicely._ She thought to herself. She had been crying since Nate had left her there to search around the neighborhood with Codsworth. She felt hopeless. Everything she had in the world was gone. What was the point in going on? _I want you to be happy…_ She thought back on Jeff's words. How could she be happy with everything that happened? The most important things in her life were gone. Despite the two hundred years that had passed, she felt like everything had happened in fifteen minutes.

She heard Nate step in through the front door. "Natalie… Codsworth says there are people in Concord." He stepped in front of her so he could make eye contact with her. "Red Rocket station is on the way…"

"I don't think that the person who was waiting for me will be there anymore." She said solemnly, pushing her hair behind her ear.

"Well… I said I would take you there…" Nate looked over a weapon he had managed to pick up around the town. "Codsworth will stay with you if you don't want to go…"

"I don't… I don't want to be a burden…" Natalie exhaled.

Nate shrugged and slowly began to walk away. Natalie watched him for a moment, seeing a bit of her father's demeanor in him. He was a determined man, despite the terrible situation he was pushed into.

She admired his determination, even though all the hope had been snatched away from him. She shook her foot nervously, beginning to tuck imaginary hairs behind her ear as she tried to decide if she should go with him. _What have I got to lose?_

"Nate!" She ran after him. He wasn't far and she caught up with him quickly. "Wait! I'll help." She caught her breath, falling in step next to him as he watched her, an unsure feeling across his face.

"Are you sure? I don't really need help. Besides, Codsworth says these people are dangerous."

"All my family is gone…" She said in a steady voice. "My fiancé, my mom, my dad. If your son is out there you deserve to be with him." She watched her feet as she walked. "I don't know how to shoot a gun, but I can learn quickly. I can learn to fight if needed."

"Why do you want to help, Natalie? You should be protecting yourself." Nate stopped walking, facing her.

"My fiancé told me, before all this shit happened. He told me he wanted me… To be happy…" She looked down with tears welling in her eyes. _Damn, I'm such a crybaby._ "I don't know if I can ever be happy, but maybe… I can help you find your son… I can help you find happiness. Maybe then… I can try to find myself some happiness…" She breathed heavily as she looked into Nate's face. "I don't know I just… I need something to keep me going."

Nate nodded slowly. "To help you keep surviving." He said as he continued to walk. "You can't ever lose hope."

Natalie nodded, thinking over the words. Never lose hope…


	4. Chapter 4: Getting Started

(Author's Note: Thanks to those who have subscribed to my story and for the favorites. Please, feel free to add any critiques. I haven't written much fanfiction, not in this detail anyways. I would appreciate any feedback I can get. Also, I realized I may get some small facts wrong, but I'm trying to keep as close to the main story timeline as possible. Please forgive me if any details don't line up perfectly, however. Once again, thank you!)

Chapter 4: Getting Started

Natalie walked around the Red Rocket, looking at the building and thinking of what it once was. She let herself go back, thinking of when she saw Jeff working at the station. It felt like ages ago. Technically it was ages ago, centuries, in fact. However, she saw the vivid images in her imagination clear as day.

Natalie exited Melly's new friend's car. It had been nearly a week since the night at the diner. That night she had met Jeff. The night she had spent her first time with a boy. She walked into the car shop, sitting in a bar stool. "Geez Melly, I don't know why I let you drag me along your boring dates."

"This isn't part of the date, Natty." Melly rolled her eyes as she sat next to Natalie. "It just so happens that Charlie needs a small fender bender fixed."

"Tell me again how this fender bender happened…?" Natalie smiled slyly at Melly.

"Well, Charlie was just trying to hold my hand while we were at the drive in. All of a sudden the car starts rolling and we slam into the car behind us!" She raises her hands exaggeratedly.

"The real story…?" Natalie propped her chin in her hand.

"Don't fool around in the front seat, Nat." She said in an almost parenting tone. "I have to practice my fake story for my folks, otherwise I'll never be allowed to step foot outside the house again."

"Well, well…" She heard a familiar voice echo in the room. "Aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" Jeff leaned on the counter between Melly and Natalie. Natalie felt a blush crawling over her cheeks. "It's been a while…"

"Uh… Yes, it has." She cleared her throat as she watched his blue eyes look her over.

"Are you busy tonight?" He flashed her that dazzling smile and she felt her heart picking up its pace.

"Valentine's night?" Melly cooed from behind him. He stood back up, giving her a raised eyebrow. "'Course she's busy sweetheart. She'll be busy all night." She was giving him a smug look as she leaned herself on one elbow.

"Bombshell like her, I can imagine…" He said with a slight disappointment in his voice.

"She's joking." Natalie gave her friend a glare. "I mean, I am kind of busy, but not… _that_ kind of busy."

"Well, that's comforting." He smiled at her softly. Melly stuck her tongue out as he turned away from her to look at Natalie again. "I was hoping maybe we could… I don't know…"

"We have a little party to go to tonight." Melly piped up again. "Although I was bringing her to meet some of my boy's friends… Maybe she would rather have a date."

Natalie's face began to burn red. _First she makes me sound uninterested, now she makes me sound desperate…_ "I wouldn't really say a date…" Natalie cleared her throat again. "Maybe just a friend to come along."

Jeff looked slightly offended, but nodded his head. "I'll be there."

Natalie sighed as she walked away from the counter where she sat over two hundred years ago. She walked into the office behind the cashier's desk, looking at the cabinets that were stuffed with papers. She noticed a few notes scattered on the floor. Curious, she picked one up and began to read it.

 _October 31st, 2077_

 _It's been about a week since the bombs fell. Almost everyone is gone. Either dead or worse. I know this is silly, but I feel like writing these letters will help me through this. Jeffrey's been getting sicker as the days pass. I'm worried he won't make it through this._

Natalie blinked, rereading the name. _Jeffrey… He survived the bombs…_ She continued reading.

 _Must be the radiation getting to him. I don't have much radaway so we're kind of stuck in a rut. I have no idea when it'll be safe to leave. We ended up in some military post, one of the soldiers standing at the front was kind enough to let us in. I don't think this place will keep us very long, though. Eventually, I'll need to get out there to find some radaway to help Jeffrey, but it won't do much good if I end up dead before I can make it back. Maybe I should risk it. At least that way, Jeffrey will be ok. I don't want to see my boy die. If he gets any worse I'm going to suck it up and head out there._

 _-Michael L._

Natalie quickly began to search for more papers, following a trail of scattered papers that led back to the cashier's desk. She opened the register and found a whole book's worth of letters. She read the one stacked on the very top.

 _December 20th, 2077_

 _They kicked us out. Something bad is happening. I don't think Jeffrey is going to survive. The soldiers at least gave us some radiation suits to wear while we try to find a new place. But Jeffrey is sick again. So sick he's beginning to look like he's decaying. His hair is falling out, he's starting to get thinner. I keep telling him everything will be ok, but I know he doesn't believe me. I don't even believe my damn self. After the soldiers gave us some radaway, I thought maybe he was starting to get better… The thing that hurts the most is that I don't think there's anything I can do to help his pain go away… Each day he looks like he's on the verge of death. I'm going to head deeper into Boston. Maybe one of the hospitals survived this whole thing. Maybe I can get my boy some help._

 _-Michael L._

She grabbed all the papers, Nate walked in to the room and she quickly spun around, not sure what to say. "He survived…"

Nate looked surprised, but then skeptical. "He survived all these years?"

"No, I don't think so…" Natalie walked towards him, looking at the dates on the different papers, "but it looks like maybe he survived a couple of years…"

Nate began speaking when she didn't say anything else. "Who was it? A relative…?"

"No, no… It was my fiancé…" She looked over the paper. "Well, I don't really know if he survived for long… His dad was writing the letters… He said that he was getting sick, most likely from the radiation. I'm going to hold on to these." She looked around for something to carry them, finding an old backpack on the ground.

"You never know, he could have survived for quite a while…" Nate threw out the suggestion. She didn't know how to feel about it. If he was suffering, she wouldn't want him to have gone through that. "Are you ready to practice?" Nate held a gun out to her.

She swallowed hard, her hands feeling shaky as she reached for the gun. "Yea… I guess."

Natalie tried to focus down the sights of the gun, her head slightly tilted. She held her breath and fired the gun at a bottle sitting near on top of an old chair. She hit it on the first try, shattering the glass. She looked back at Nate who was walking to place another bottle on the chair. "We'll use the rest of the bottles and then start heading to Concord." He said, moving the chair further away from her.

"I really hope I won't have to use this…" She groaned, feeling sick at the thought of having to _kill_ someone.

"Maybe they shot at Codsworth because he isn't a human." Nate said thoughtfully. "We could get lucky and they could be nice people. I don't mean to rush you," He began walking back to her as she started to aim at the bottle, "but I don't want to waste time when Shaun could be out there."

"I understand…" She inhaled slowly and tried to shoot the bottle, missing. "Damn…"

"Relax," He instructed, "I know you're worried, but try to focus." She raised the gun again, as she exhaled, she pulled the trigger. The bullet sprung out and hit the bottle, shattering it like the others she hit. Nate gave her a small congratulatory clap. "That was good, especially for your first time." He began to set out another bottle.

"We should get going," Natalie said, deciding that maybe it would be best to continue moving on. "I think I'll be ok… As long as I only have to do it in self-defense."

Nate nodded and walked over to the old bag Natalie was using to carry supplies. "I'll be here to watch your back…" He pulled out his own pistol and checked it.

They walked down to Concord, stopping and checking some of the old buildings that hadn't been completely demolished by the bombs. They found a lunch box of old bottle caps hidden away in one of the buildings. "Weird…" Nate turned the box over, reading on some tape wrapping the box closed. "Caps Stash. Do not touch."

"Should we leave it here?" Natalie asked, slightly confused by the box as well.

"Maybe we could use it to trade, it must be important if they wrote 'Do not touch' on it." Nate shrugged and dropped the tin box inside her backpack.

They continued walking and faintly heard the sound of gunshots. Natalie felt slightly panicked, but she prepared herself by pulling out her gun.

"One thing to remember," Nate said as he prepared his own weapon, "Do not hesitate to shoot if anyone is trying to take your life."

Natalie gave a slight nod. She remembered her dad would always share stories of fighting in other countries. She imagined he had to do the same thing, act quickly to save his life. She attempted to gather courage inside her.

They walked into the area where the shooting was coming from, people were dressed in different forms of ragged armor hid behind makeshift cover. They aimed at the top of the Museum of Freedom, shooting at someone who was standing on the small balcony. Nate led them to hide behind an old red truck. Natalie felt herself beginning to get scared, closing her eyes for a moment to gather her thoughts.

"Natalie?" Nate whispered to her. "Are you ok?" He looked concerned as he peeked over the hood of the rusted vehicle.

"Yea… What should we do?" She asked, letting her body weight fall against the side of the car as she tried to relax.

"I think we should help that man… He looks like he's stuck up there."

"What if they're the bad guys?" She asked in regards to the man who was wielding some sort of laser rifle.

Nate let out a small laugh. "Bad guys?"

She gave him a glare. "What?"

"Well, it's just that… It sounds like something a kid would say." Nate slowly stepped up from behind the truck. "Let's find out, then."

Natalie stayed behind the truck as he approached the group who was apparently still consumed by the gunfire exchange. She heard a voice yell out, the man from the balcony she presumed. "Hey! Up here! I've got a group of settlers but the raiders are almost through the doors!" She heard Nate give her a whistle. When she looked around the side of the truck he was already in combat. There were a couple of men surrounding him. Natalie felt herself beginning to panic. _What do I do? He needs my help but I'm scared…_ She squeezed her eyes shut. She thought back to a story her dad had told her. How he tried to save his friend from a group of Chinese soldiers but was too scared to come out from his cover. How his friend was found at a military base years later, beaten and tortured. If he had only had the courage to stand up and defend that man, he would have lived.

Nate was hit in the center of his back with a tire iron, the man dressed in leather armor brought up his arms for another swing. Nate hunched over to protect himself from the swing, but looked up in surprise when the tire iron fell next to him on the ground. Natalie, her eyes wide with fear, managed to hit the raider straight in the head.

"I got him!" Natalie yelled. Nate aimed his gun at a person standing to his right, firing a couple rounds into them. She saw one of the raiders running towards her, carrying a knife. The man pulled his arm back, getting ready to stab Natalie as he swiftly approached her. She attempted to fire, missing horribly. "NO!" She yelled as she fell back on to the ground, causing the man to miss his initial swing.

"Natalie!" Nate yelled and began running towards her, his gun must have been out of ammo.

The raider lifted his arm as he prepared for another jab, straddling Natalie. She struggled against him. He brought the knife down, cutting her forearm as she covered her face. "Stay still pretty girl," The man hissed. "Let's not make this messy." Her ears were ringing, the sky above her felt like it was spinning. Suddenly, the man was pulled off her. Natalie watched the blood run down her arm, the pain a dull stinging. She was gasping, trying to catch her breath. She reached for her gun, not realizing she had even let go of it. The man had been pulled off by a dog, a German Shephard by the looks of it. The dog gnawed into the man's arm as he yelled, trying to kick the dog off of him. "Fuck!" He screamed as the dog turned its head downward, twisting the man's arm in a gruesome manner.

Natalie tried to line up a shot, her hands shaking even more with her fresh wound. The dog whimpered as the raider landed a kick on him. Nate grabbed the man, struggling with him, trying to stop his swinging arm while throwing his own punches. Natalie breathed in, trying to focus. _Take the shot, take the shot._ The man suddenly kicked Nate, causing him to double over. He fell to the ground, gasping from the kick to his midsection.

Natalie exhaled, and it felt as if time stood still. She could swear everything was in slow motion. The bullet whirled through the air, almost making a sort of whistling sound as it came in contact with the raider's head. The raider fell still on the ground. Nate slowly stood back up, looking around at the scene. "That didn't go as… smoothly as I'd hoped…" He limped over to Natalie who was still sitting on the ground.

"I got him…" She whispered, her mouth hanging slightly open as she took in the scene herself. She hadn't even noticed she had been crying the entire time. _Not surprising…_ she thought to herself. The dog that rescued her limped over and began to lick at her wound, causing her to flinch. Nate reached his hand out to help her up. "Well… I guess we have this guy to thank for saving our lives…" She smirked, patting the dog's head.

"Yea… guess he doesn't have an owner." Nate reached down and petted the dog gently. "Want to come with us, boy?" The dog panted happily at the attention.

"Hey! Grab that laser musket and meet us on the top floor!" The voice yelled from the balcony.

They walked over, Nate grabbing the weapon off the ground and picking up the extra ammo cartridges. "You did good… Ready for round two?" He asked, noticing the sound of gunfire muffled behind the door.

Natalie swallowed, feeling a little more confident in herself now. "Yea…" She smiled slightly, mostly in disbelief that she survived the whole ordeal. "I've got your back."


	5. Chapter 5: Finding Sanctuary

Chapter 5: Finding Sanctuary

After what felt like an eternity of combat, they finally made it to the top floor. A man named Preston was explaining their situation. He and his group of settlers were trying to find a new place to stay. All of Preston's team had slowly been decreasing in numbers over time. Their main problem at the moment was getting out of the Museum alive.

"We thought Concord would be a safe place to settle. Those raiders proved us wrong." Preston paused a moment in thought. "We do have one idea…"

"Ok, let's hear it." Nate said without skipping a beat.

"Sturges, tell him." Preston nodded to a man fiddling with a computer.

Natalie felt the blood from her arm still dripping. She took a moment to step away from the conversation to look for something to wrap up her arm. _I guess he cut me pretty deep._ She thought to herself as she grabbed some old rags out of a cabinet. She began wrapping her arm gently, trying not to tug at the skin too much. The pain was throbbing, she sucked in her breath as she tried to ignore it.

"Natalie," Nate called her attention as he walked up. "They said there's some power armor on the roof. I have to go get a fusion core from the basement and then I'm going to get the power armor to finish fighting off the other raiders."

"Want me to come?" She tucked the end of the rag underneath a fold to hold it in place, wincing at the movement.

"I think you should wait with the group for now. That wound is bleeding too much for a small injury." He pointed to her arm. "I want you to keep pressure on it and try to stop the bleeding." He gathered up more ammo for the laser musket before heading to the lower floors.

Preston led the group to the bottom floor shortly after Nate left. Natalie sat in the corner by herself, keeping pressure on the wound so it would stop bleeding. Preston approached her, handing her a syringe. "This'll help you."

"Thanks," Natalie slowly reached for it.

"Don't worry, it's just a stimpak." Preston gave a light chuckle.

"Oh, ok." She sounded relieved. "A doctor had to use this on me one time when I broke my leg from falling off a bike." She recalled. "Dad was furious that mom let me ride by myself." She gave a small smile, thinking back on her family. When things were normal. When they were alive. Her smile disappeared as quickly as it came. She cleared her throat, trying not to think on the past. "I didn't know how to stop, ended up rolling downhill."

"That sounds like it was fun while it lasted. Must have been a pretty safe settlement for you to be able to ride around without supervision." He helped her pull the bandage off her arm, the dried blood stinging as it came up from the wound.

"Yea, the neighborhood was pretty nice." She replied softly. "Do I just push this in?"

"Here let me help you," He showed her how to inject the stimpak. The sensation was cool for a moment while it made the pain disappear. In a matter of seconds, her arm appeared to be healing in front of her eyes.

"You shouldn't be giving her our supplies." A dark haired woman barked from across the room.

"Marcy, we have to help people where we can." Sturges said in a stern tone.

"Whatever, everything is just going to get worse from here. It's best to save those things for people who really need it." Her face was twisted into an angry frown.

Preston rolled his eyes, "These people are helping us. The least we can do is spare some stimpaks."

There was a loud roar outside, shaking the walls of the old museum. "What the hell is that?" Natalie shot a look to Preston.

"I knew it, I saw it Preston." The elderly lady gasped from a corner of the room.

"A deathclaw?" Sturges looked at Preston questioningly.

"Quiet, everyone." He stepped softly to a window. Natalie stood up quickly and followed behind him. Beyond the window stood a large beast, at least four times the size of Nate, even with the power armor on. "Looks like it…" he responded to Sturges' question.

"Should we help?" Natalie began to feel anxious, watching the struggle between the monster and Nate.

"Unless you have a mini nuke launcher, I would say no." Marcy growled.

The behemoth picked up Nate, tossing him to the ground. Nate attempted to aim a mini-gun at the creature, missing at least twenty bullets. Dogmeat began barking at the window, sensing the danger. "We have to do something!" Natalie gasped, opening the door.

"Wait, no!" Preston tried to reach for her but she was already out the door.

She grabbed her pistol, aiming at the deathclaw as it attempted to claw at Nate. She fired a couple rounds into its face. It let out a large roar as it began to turn towards her. Dogmeat charged at the beast, digging his teeth into its leg.

"Natalie! Get back!" Jeff stepped to his feet. The mini-gun took a moment before firing. Dogmeat was retreating as the deathclaw attempted to swat at him. Natalie moved in a little closer, continuing to fire rounds. Her gun suddenly stopped firing. She pulled out the magazine, it was empty. "Watch out!" Nate shouted to her.

She looked up, seeing the monster toppling over as it was losing its balance. _Shit!_ She tried to jump out the way but some part of the deathclaw whacked her from behind, hitting her in the head, causing her to black out.

Natalie woke up in a familiar setting. Everything looked like it was back to normal. _It was all a dream…_ She breathed a sigh of relief, rolling over on a soft mattress. Jeff lay next to her. She scooted in closer to him, feeling his body heat spread across her back. He shifted a bit, wrapping an arm around her. "Best Valentine's ever." _No… this is a dream._ She recalled the memory, even from her dream. He breathed into her hair.

"Yea, it was amazing." She spoke, sounding distant. She started to break from his arms as she looked for her clothes.

"Stay with me." He groaned as she sat up on the edge of the bed.

"I need to get home." She pulled a shirt over her head.

"No, just…" He began to sit up, stretching a little. "A couple more hours…"

She shook her head, "I don't want to do this to you…" She swallowed hard.

"Do what?" He looked confused, running a hand smoothly over her arm.

"Lead you on. I'm not… I don't want a relationship." She didn't turn to face him. Didn't want to see his disappointed eyes.

"Why is that?" He waited for a response… Nothing. "I know it gets annoying. How cliché I can be… I'm not like those other guys I hang out with."

"No, it's not that… My family… My dad has high expectations. Wants me to marry a doctor or lawyer." She let out a frustrated sound.

"Want me to go to law school?" He said in a half-joking tone. She felt him shift closer, his lips caressing the back of her shoulder. "I would take care of you, no matter what." She didn't say anything back to him. "I want to be with you…"

"Well, I'm sure we'll end up seeing each other again at some point." She began to get up.

He grabbed her arm gently. "No, I mean…" She looked him in the eyes. "I want to be with only you. I don't want to be with anyone else."

"Is this about the sex?" She felt a heat cross her face, slightly embarrassed for bringing up the idea, mostly hurt that the idea might be true.

"This is way more than that." He scooted to the edge of the bed. "I've never met anyone like you…"

"Really…" She said bluntly. No questioning tone, more sarcastic than anything. There was nothing remarkable about her personality. She was a coward, scared to take a step in the direction _she_ wanted as opposed to what her father wanted for her.

"Really," He said with emphasis. "You don't see it but. You're brave. You're caring. There's something strong in you. I know it's there, even if you don't." He held her hand firmly. "You're a courageous person, despite what you might feel."

"You're wrong… I'm more scared than anything…" She sighed, running her thumb over his skin.

"Being scared doesn't mean you're not strong. Like how I'm sure you were scared to speak to me at the diner, but I thank God you were brave enough to do it. You could have ran off any moment, but instead you decided to fight through that fear." He looked at her with complete seriousness. She knew he was speaking from the heart. "Please…" He whispered as he tilted his head down. "I love you…" He whispered.

In that moment she didn't say she loved him back. She just leaned in and kissed his forehead. He seemed to understand, she wasn't sure if she loved him yet, so he let her finish getting dressed, watching her the whole time. "I don't want to tell my family, yet. I'm not ready to face that…" She said as she stood at his bedroom door. He looked up at her, a small blush creeping across his cheeks. He flashed her that beautiful smile. "I was only brave enough to talk to you because you kept encouraging me…"

"Wake up!" Nate was patting her cheek, everything was foggy and hazy. They were back at his home in Sanctuary Hills. "Hey, can you hear me?" He snapped his fingers in front of his face, trying to get her to focus on him.

"Yea, stop… snapping." She swatted at his hand, the blurry figure becoming more defined. "How did I get here?"

"We had to carry you the whole way." Marcy snarled.

"Well, it helps that you're pretty lightweight." Sturges smiled down at her.

"I don't know how to thank you two." Preston said, leaning forward in the chair he sat in. "You've given us a chance to start over. To do some good in the commonwealth." He smiled at them.

"You're welcome," Nate said casually. "I wish I could stay and help out more, but I should get going to Diamond City."

"Diamond City?" Natalie sat up slightly, her head throbbing a bit.

"Preston says there should be people who can help us out there…" Nate fiddled with his thumbs a bit. "I know you said you wanted to come, but… I really think you should stay here."

"You don't want me around?" She asked, offended.

"No, it's not that… It's just that… Seeing you get hurt like that. I barely even know you and for you to sacrifice your life…" He looked her directly in the eyes. "It's not right for a stranger to ask that of you."

"You didn't ask me to do that… I did it because I wanted to." Natalie sat up, still feeling dizzy from the injury. "I know we're basically strangers, but I can't just let you go off without any help at all." She looked at him in disbelief. "My father spent years of his life saving strangers. People he never even talked to. In this new world we're living in, we need people to watch our backs. It's not like the old world where we can just carry on by ourselves. We need each other to survive. We have to look out for each other, Nate. If we don't do it, who else will?"

Nate didn't say anything. Preston cleared his throat, "She does make a valid point."

"Yea, she does…" Nate began to stand up. "Your father sounds like he was a very brave man."

"He was." She felt a slight sadness in her heart. It felt like only a day had passed since she last spoke with him.

"It sounds like he also passed some of that courage on to you." Nate reached a hand out to her, helping her stand.

"God, I hope so." She smiled a little.

"Let's do it, then. I've got your back." He reached out his hand, preparing for an agreeing shake.

"And I yours." She gripped his hand firmly.

The next day they began to head out, saying their goodbyes to Preston and his group of settlers before leaving. The first few minutes walking, they kept quiet. Finally, Natalie decided to break the silence. "We're going to find him." She didn't look Nate in the eyes, watching her feet as she stepped over some rocks.

"I know." He said in confidence.


	6. Chapter 6: Home Run

(Author's Note: Thanks again for all the faves and follows. Please leave a review and let me know how you think things are going so far or how I can improve things. This chapter, I tried to delve more into Nate's ideas. I'm going to try to balance his views and Natalie's views a bit more as the chapters continue. Reviews and critiques are welcome! They help me out so much! Also, I'm changing some details so it doesn't feel like I'm basically writing a walk through of the game with parts of my story thrown in. I did this a little with Dogmeat in previous chapters.)

Chapter 6: Home Run

Natalie kept a lookout while Nate took a moment to rest up. They decided it was best to make multiple pit stops instead of travelling straight to Diamond City. Not only that, but Nate had also began leading them in the wrong direction, not realizing he placed his marker way too far North. They ended up at a small settlement called Tenpines Bluff before they realized they were going the wrong way.

Right now they were at the Starlight Drive-In, hiding in the roof of the old concessions building. It had started to get dark outside, they agreed it was best to only travel during the day. Nate decided to ask Natalie a few questions to get to know her better. "Where were you born?" He fell back onto an old dirty mattress, causing some dust to fly up.

"Boston born and raised." She went through her backpack, attempting to organize boxes of ammo they picked up. "Dad was from Boston, mom was from Pittsburg."

"So why settle in Boston?" Nate perked up an eyebrow as he questioned.

"Why did you?" She asked in return.

"I guess all the scenery… History." He shrugged.

"It was my dad's decision. I never really questioned why, we just knew Boston as home." She zipped up the bag, pulling out ammo for her pistol and reloading it.

"Wait, how'd you know I wasn't from Boston?"

"I just guessed, I wasn't actually sure." She gave a small laugh. "Was your wife from Boston?"

"Oh, no. She was from New York. Big city girl." He gave a sad smile at her memory. "She was smart, too. I'd even go as far to say a genius." He scratched at his scruff of facial hair growing out. "She was a lawyer, had a firm with an old classmate she graduated with. Yea, I met her when I was attending a military academy in New York."

"You were in the military?"

"Yea, ten years of service." Nate gave a smug smile, proud of his patriotic background.

"My dad was, too. General in the army." She smiled at him. "He was stationed in the Middle East for a while. Not entirely sure the time span."

"What about your fiancé? What did he do?" Nate questioned.

"Oh, he and his dad owned that Red Rocket near Sanctuary." She fiddled with her fingers while she spoke. "He was really good with mechanical stuff."

"I think I met him one time, guy that always wore leather jackets?" He tried to think back. He had only been to the shop once.

"Yea," She chuckled a little. "He loved them, I think he owned at least three."

"How old was he?"

"Twenty-five." She replied.

"Wait, how old are you?" Nate sat up a moment.

She squinted her eyes a little. "Take a guess." She said playfully.

He looked up, as if trying to pull the answer out of his head. "I honestly thought you were maybe sixteen, seventeen. Now that you say that I have no idea."

"I'm nineteen." She laughed a little.

"Wasn't too far off." He leaned back onto the mattress again, closing his eyes. "Only a six year difference."

"Yea, I was seventeen when we started dating, though. So it was kind of awkward at first." She blushed, a little embarrassed about the whole age difference.

"So you were seventeen and he was… Twenty-three?" He scrunched his eyebrows a little. "Well, that's not too bad. I know some people that were fifteen dating twenty-eight year olds."

"Isn't that a little pedophilic?" Natalie made a face of disgust.

"Yea, but high school girls don't think about it that way." Nate mirrored her face as he thought about it more. "My first girlfriend actually left me for someone who was ten years older than her. Called me immature." He snorted. "I think she just wanted to date someone who could get her into rated r movies. Sneak her into bars and clubs."

Natalie laughed a little. She leaned back against the wall, relaxing some. Nate was beginning to close his eyes and doze off when she woke him. "Do you miss her?"

"My first girlfriend?" He asked in a sleepy haze.

"No, no. Your wife…" she wasn't looking him in the eyes.

"Yea…" He closed his eyes again, imagining her face. He missed her a lot. He decided not to think too hard on her, not wanting to get too emotional. "I don't think everything has really hit me yet… I feel like it's going to crash down on me any moment. I'm gonna end up breaking." He swallowed hard. "I still can't believe she's really gone…" He felt his face getting warm, as if he were going to cry. _Stop it._

"I know what you mean… I'm starting to feel a little… numb... towards the whole situation…" She looked down at the old dirty floor. "This world we've walked into, it's fu-messed up…" She didn't really like using _that_ word.

"Fucked." Nate finished for her. "Parents aren't around to tell you not to swear." He joked. She didn't say anything. When he looked up, tears were pouring down her cheeks. She covered her mouth with her hand as she gasped a little, trying not to sob. "Hey, hey. Relax." He sat up, moving next to her. "It's ok, kid. Everything is going to be ok." He reached an arm out to her, patting her back gently. He watched her bring her knees up to her chest as she began to weep even more, this time not able to hold back the gasps. She buried her face in her arms. _Way to go, Nate._ Unsure of what to do, he reached his arms around her, pulling her in to a comforting embrace.

He remembered when Nora was crying like this one night, when she found out she was pregnant. The _first_ time… Before Shaun. They had only been dating a few months. She was still in college, he was in the military academy. She wasn't ready for a kid, she was scared. Cried the entire night, scared of how she was screwing up her whole life. The baby ended up not making it, which probably hurt her even more, considering she was wanting to go through with the pregnancy after things began to settle down. _Don't think about it. Not now._

They ended up staying like that the whole night, her crying until she fell asleep in his arms. He placed an old jacket they had found earlier over her to keep her warm. He decided things should stay calm enough overnight so he decided to sleep, too. When he woke up in the morning she was still asleep. He gathered up their items and headed downstairs, looking for anything else that they might need to take with them on the road. He took out some pieces of leather armor they picked up from some raiders they had to kill on the way to the drive-in. He wondered if Natalie would ever get used to having to kill people. Even after years of being in the military he still wasn't completely used to it.

She joined him downstairs a few minutes later, wearing the jacket over her vault suit, her eyes bloodshot and puffy from all the crying the night before. "Sorry," She apologized, rubbing her eye with her sleeve.

"It's fine, I have all our stuff together." He said without a worry.

"Thank you, though…" She yawned a little. "I know it's kind of awkward for me to throw my emotions on you like that, seeing as we just met two days ago…"

"Well, this is a little different… Like you said, we're all we've got right now." He handed her a can of cram. "I think that makes us pretty close friends." He smirked at her. "Eat up, we've got a lot walking to do." He gave her some leather armor to wear over her vault suit.

They walked for almost the entire day before they came to the gates of Diamond city. "Well, at least we know we'll be safe." Nate said as he noted the many turrets surrounding the streets leading to the city.

"That's true…" Natalie looked around a bit nervously.

Outside of the gates was a dark haired woman wearing a red trench coat and hat. She was arguing with a man over an intercom speaker. She signaled over to them, whispering. "Hey, you guys want into Diamond City, right?"

"Uhm…" Natalie looked to Nate with wide eyes.

"Yea, we do." He answered swiftly.

"Ok, play along." She began to speak loudly with her next sentence. "What was that? A caravan? Oh, boy Danny. McDonough's going to be mad if you make him miss out on this opportunity!"

"What? Wait." He groaned. "Fine, fine. Just hold on." The gates began creaking open.

Inside stood multiple men dressed in strange uniforms, all wearing umpire masks and baseball padding. Nate shot Natalie a look of confusion. "Danny! I told you not to let her in!" Barked a slightly overweight man wearing a clean suit and matching hat to one of the guards behind the counter.

"I'm sorry Mayor McDonough! She said there were caravan traders."

"Caravan…? Piper! You devious, rabble-rousing slanderer! The level of dishonesty in that paper of yours! I'll have that printer scrapped for parts!" He pointed a finger threateningly at the woman.

"Is that a quote McDonough?" She exaggeratedly ran her hands in the air, printing out imaginary words into the air. "'Tyrant mayor shuts down the press?'" She snapped her head towards Nate. "Hey, what about you? How do you feel about this? Do you support the press?"

"I've always believed in freedom of the press." He said without a beat, clearly amused by the argument in front of him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to drag you two into this. You look like Diamond City material!" He gave them a political smile, reaching out for a handshake. "Welcome to the great green jewel of the commonwealth!"

"Uhmm… Sure…" Nate gave an awkward handshake to him. _Great, just like in the good old days. Political figures giving fake smiles. At least there's one thing that hasn't changed._

"I'm sure it is." Natalie said a bit sarcastically, which the mayor didn't catch.

"Now, is there a reason you're stopping in Diamond City?" He cleared his throat a little.

"We're looking for someone…"

"Missing person," Natalie ended Nate's thought.

"Oh, I see..." The mayor's face turned into a serious stare.

"Well, don't count on the security here to help you out." Piper began to walk into the city. "I know someone who could help you, though."

"Piper, you better stay out of trouble!" The mayor warned her as she walked away. "Hope you enjoy your stay in Diamond City!" He cheerfully added as Nate and Natalie followed her.

The old baseball stadium was completely transformed. Makeshift buildings were set up from the dirt floor all the way up to the higher level stands. Natalie stared in awe. "This is pretty impressive."

"Yea, this must be your first time in Diamond City." Piper said matter o' factly.

"Well, it just looks so different from when I was last here…" She continued to admire the structures as Piper led them down the steps.

"When was that?" She asked as she watched her feet, being careful not to trip over any crumbled steps.

"Well, let's just say it's been a few years…" Natalie evaded a direct answer.

"Ok, well I just have to check in on my little sister, Nat." She gave them a friendly smile.

"Oh, is that short for something?" Natalie asked, thinking maybe they shared a name.

"No, why do you ask?" She looked suspiciously at her.

"Uhm, it's just that. My name is Natalie… I've had people call me, Nat though. So…" She cleared her throat. Nate gave a small laugh at her awkward response.

"Anyways," Nate spoke up. "Where is the person who can help us?"

"Oh, his name is Valentine. Nick Valentine… I'll take you to him. He's worked on tons of missing person cases."

"Oh, so kidnappings are common here?" Nate found it a little hard to believe with all the security.

"Well, mostly kidnappings. Rarely, people will run off thinking the commonwealth has more to offer than the 'safety' of Diamond City." She placed air quotes around the word.

"The Institute is the most likely suspect in disappearances." _Institute?_ Nate questioned to himself. They approached a building with neon letters that read "Publick Occurrences". "Hey, Nat." She reached her arms out to a small girl wearing a yellow jacket and pink backpack.

"Piper! You're home!" She giggled as her older sister squeezed her. "Any good stories?"

"I'll tell you all about them later. This is Natalie and…"

"Nate."

"Nate, yes. They might be our next interviewees. They've never been to Diamond City before. Well, at least for a few years, so they probably have some interesting stories, too." She tapped her sister's nose. "Go inside and wash up, I'll see you in a bit."

"Ok, I love you!" She ran into the building.

"Interview?" Nate and Natalie asked at the same tame.

"Yes, that's part of the deal for me helping you get in to Diamond City." She smirked.

"I think _we_ actually helped you." Nate said, his eyebrows raised in question.

"Well, however it went. It doesn't have to be now but I really want to get one with you. Well, I guess we should go meet Nick, then." She led them down past a market area into an alleyway setting. They followed the neon heart sign labeled "Valentine's Detective Agency".

The door was tucked down a brick hallway. Piper knocked on it firmly. A woman answered it. "Piper? How'd you get back in? I thought McDonough kicked you out for good."

"That's a long story, Ellie. Is Nick in right now?" She tried to peek behind the metal door.

"He just got back from a really long case."

"Please, ask him to let us see him." Nate said with urgency.

"Well, ok. I know he wouldn't say no, so…" She closed the door, the sound of a chain lock being removed before she opened it fully. "Detective Valentine? You have a couple guests." She led them into the office.

A robotic man sat at the desk, going through some old files. He looked straight out of a noir film, hat, trench coat, and all. _What in the world…?_ "Oh, have a seat." The robot motioned Nate to the empty chair directly in front of him. He sounded completely human, despite his appearance. Aside from Natalie, no one else as surprised. "What can I do for you?" He reached out a thin metallic hand. The tips looked too sharp to come in contact with.

Nate didn't reach out his hand, staring with a somewhat frightened expression at the man. "Who… What are you?"

"Oh, I'm sorry." He retreated his hand, extend a more human looking one in its place. He answered slowly, as if he was taken aback that they didn't know what this robot man was. "I'm a synth… Synthetic man. I've got all the parts, minus a few blood cells." He gave a small chuckled.

Nate cautiously reached out and shook his hand. "Synth…" He repeated. "Ahem. Anyways, we're here about a missing person. My baby boy, actually… He was less than a year old." Nate's face began to change into a stern expression.

"Do you think the institute could be behind this?" Ellie asked, quickly joining them to listen to more of the conversation.

"Maybe, but… Well, can you tell me everything you remember? Were there any faces?" Valentine lit a cigarette as he leaned back into his chair.

Nate took a deep breath, preparing himself mentally to go over every detail. "Well, we were in a vault. Vault one-eleven. We barely made it in time before the bombs fell."

"Wait, you're telling me you're over two hundred years old?" Piper said with a hint of skepticism in her voice.

"Not exactly." Natalie began to explain.

"We were cryogenically frozen…" Nate continued. "My wife… She was in a pod with my son. I remember waking up, I saw a man with a scar and someone wearing a white lab coat open up my wife's pod and… They took my son." His hands were balled into fists. "Then the man… He killed my wife…"

"Scar, huh?" Nick said, deep in thought. "Did you hear a name?"

"Oh, yea." Nate said in a sarcastic tone, but he also had a hint of anger behind it. "Got a home address and telephone number, everything."

"Ok, ok relax." Nick raised his hands defensively. "Now tell me, do you remember anything else?"

"They said I was the… back up." Nate swallowed hard. He was confused by the whole situation. Mostly, though, he was angry that he couldn't do anything to stop the people. He felt useless during that time. He felt useless now, not being able to find his son immediately. Natalie hadn't asked the details about what had happened, possibly out of respect. He knew she wouldn't want to relive and retell all her trauma, so he assumed that she thought the same of him. She was right, it was difficult for him to explain everything. He felt an anger burning deep in him, but he tried to focus on Nick as he thought over the details for a moment.

"Sounds like it could be Kellogg." He blew out some smoke that he sucked in from his cigarette. "Ellie, grab his file…"

She disappeared and shortly returned. Piper glared at the file from across the desk. "That man's scum. Worst of the worst… And now he's kidnapping children, too!" She slammed her fist into her palm. "Nick we have to do something!"

"I know, Piper, calm down!" He ordered her as he went over some things in the file. "I was following his trail, but it went cold. Maybe we can get some information from his house, though. He hasn't been in town for a while now…"

"How are we going to get into his house without a key?" Natalie asked.

"The old fashioned way," Nate said. "Breaking and entering."

Nick shot him a judging look. "Normally I would be against this, but considering this guy's worse than dirt. I can make a moral exception."

Before they knew it, Nate was wiggling a bobby pin into the lock of the door. Piper decided to sit this one out, afraid that breaking and entering would get her kicked out of Diamond City indefinitely. Once inside they looked for some information on where Kellogg could be. Nick found a couple of his personal items, nothing they could get a lead from.

Nate looked at the home. It seemed rather normal, he half expected there to be an arsenal of weapons, maybe even his own files on other children he might have kidnapped.

Natalie went over to search his desk but tripped over a mat on the way. She hit the ground hard, landing behind the desk. Nate ran over to help her out "You ok?"

"Yea, I'm fine." She dusted off her vault suit, wincing a little as she began to stand up. "Hey, look?"

"What is it?" Nick asked, pulling out another cigarette to light it.

Nate pushed the button. A secret room opened up with an arsenal of supplies. A chair sat solitary in the room, a small table next to it. Nick walked over, picking up a cigar sitting on the table. "Strange brand…" He said thoughtfully. "There's no way we can get anywhere with it by itself, though."

"What are we going to do?" Natalie sounded hopeless.

"Well, I do know someone…" He said, tapping off the ashes from his cigarette. "A friend of mine who just so happens to owe me a favor." He gave a grin to the two, who were looking at each other questioningly.

They stepped outside. "Now let me just calibrate something." He paused a moment. "Hopefully he isn't too far out."

Suddenly, Dogmeat ran up to them. Natalie gave a small laugh of disbelief. "How'd you do that?" She said in amazement, petting the dog as he licked her.

"I can emit a whistle sound, I just had to adjust its pitch."

"Amazing," Nate said. "So how do we do this?"

"I'm hoping he might be able to track him, if he hasn't gone too far."

"Well, let's head out then." He let Dogmeat sniff the cigar. _I know this is crazy, but it has to work._ He thought to himself.

"Listen, I know this is personal business, so if you don't want me to come just let me know." Nick said, his yellow eyes focused on Nate.

"Well, we might need you detective skills." Natalie said in an almost questioning tone. Nate nodded in agreement.

Dogmeat led them along Kellogg's trail. The whole time Nate tried to think of what he would do when they arrived at his location. Was his son ok? What if his son wasn't even there? _He has to be…_ he thought to himself. He remembered something he promised to himself long before they started this journey, before he even left his pod in vault one-eleven. _I will destroy the people who took my son._


	7. Chapter 7: Get it Out

Chapter 7: Get it Out

They followed Dogmeat all the way to Fort Hagen where he let out a sad whimper at a barricaded door, scratching at it incessantly, until Natalie stopped him. "It's ok, boy. Good job," she thanked him as she patted his head. Nate stared at the door, a dark look in his eyes. It was nighttime so she couldn't see his exact expression, but she felt a nervousness stir in her as she watched him.

"I think we can handle it from here, Dogmeat." Nick said as he dropped his cigarette on the dirt. "We should find a way in."

Nate didn't say anything, simply nodding as he began to walk around the building. They followed behind him quietly while Dogmeat ran home. They took out a few turrets as they continued to search for an entrance that wasn't blocked off. They eventually went into the parking garage, hoping to find an entrance through there. Nick tried to make small talk as they walked through the garage. "I'm guessing you don't know much about the Institute and their synths, seeing as you've basically walked into this world a few days ago."

"You're the first synth we've seen out here." Natalie said as she tucked her hair behind her ear, making sure her gun had enough ammunition.

"Well, let me tell you. Those other guys out here that might look like me, they can't be reasoned with. They're programmed to attack whoever the Institute tells them to, which is practically everyone."

"Why are you different?" Nate questioned.

"Not sure why, but the institute threw me away. I'm not programmed the same way that other synths are, which may be why they tossed me." He tilted his head down, pulling his gun from his pocket as they approached a door.

Natalie swallowed hard, her heart beginning to beat fast. "Do you think there'll be a lot of them?" She was nervous about fighting. She wondered if that feeling would ever go away.

"Definitely," Nick nodded, Nate hesitated to open the door for a moment. "Keep your eyes peeled."

After a moment he swung the door open, keeping his gun aimed the entire time, ready to open fire when needed. It was dead silent, they roamed through the broken walls. Nate relaxed a little, peeking around a corner "Are they more stealth-based?" He whispered in a low voice.

Nick's eyes swept around the room. "I'm not sure… but they don't give warning—" As if on cue, a red laser travelled through the air, barely missing Nate as he pulled from around the corner. "Damn!" Nick opened fire, shooting the synth that opened fire on him.

"Behind us!" Natalie turned quickly, barely hitting a synth that was walking in through one of the torn down walls.

"Movement detected. Curious." A robotic voice echoed.

"Spread out, take them down!" Nate ordered as he walked out from behind the wall, firing some bullets at enemies Natalie and Nick couldn't see.

"I don't think that's such a good idea!" Natalie shouted at him but he continued to walk away. _Damn it…_ she thought to herself with a groan. She didn't want to be left alone, especially not in the middle of a fight.

"I've got your back, kid." Nick reassured her. She smiled at him, nervousness written all over her face. He gave a small chuckle as they prepared for more gunfire.

Nate continued through the building. He shot all the synths he saw, a rage building deep inside him as he thought of the man who stole his wife's life and his child from him. He wanted to destroy them all, turn them in to nothing. He wanted to make Kellogg suffer for everything he did. Avenge his family for all the wrong that was done. Before he knew it, he was standing at an elevator. He held his breath before venturing further, leaving his partners behind. _They'll catch up…_

He walked through the corridors, stepping over tripwires every now and then. There were a few synths, but he took them down easily with minimal damage. He walked downstairs, but stopped when he heard a voice over an intercom. "If it isn't my old friend, the frozen T.V. dinner." Nate looked around for a moment, listening to the voice. _Kellogg…_ he clenched his jaw, moving forward down the hall as the voice continued to speak.

"Last time we met you were cozying up to the peas and the apple cobbler." Nate rushed through a door that released a tripwire, setting off an electrical trap. He grunted at the burning sensation that enveloped him. He swore under his breath, hurrying to move out of the area being affected by the electrical current.

He pressed forward, heading deeper into the building. He took out a turret propped up in a corner. "I'm sorry your house has been wrecked for two hundred years, but I don't need a roommate. Leave." Kellogg said in a half-joking, half-serious tone.

"Fuck you…" Nate mumbled under his breath. Now he was eager. Excited to see the face of the man who mocked him as he struggled through various different traps to find him. Excited to see the color drain from his face as he killed him.

He reached a hallway with more synths inside, they immediately began shooting at him. He returned the fire with extreme accuracy, blowing the head off one of the machines. Two more continued to shoot at him. His gun clicked, the magazine was empty. He ran over to the machines, enduring the searing pain of the lasers as he rammed into one machine, knocking it on the ground. He reached for the weapon of the other synth, slamming his fist into its face. It buzzed some generic phrase as it released the laser rifle from its grasp. He immediately began to shoot the rifle at the synth trying to recover from the fall, the lasers causing sparks to fly off his metallic body. "Systems shutting down." The synth hummed electronically as Nate gave it the last two shots in the magazine. He threw the weapon on the floor as he spun around, his fist grinding into the face of the synth for the second time. "Hostiles dete-" He punched again, this time slamming the back of its head into the wall in the hallway. He reached for an exposed wire, ripping it out. "Ocular sensors offline." It buzzed and then the power completely shut off in the body, causing the machine to go limp.

He looked at the oil that covered his hand as the intercom came back on, Kellogg taunting him more. He didn't hear it as he reloaded his gun and picked up the laser rifle he dropped earlier. He quickly grabbed the ammo he found on the synths before moving on.

"Looks like he got most of the," Nick said as he kicked a limp mechanical body sprawled on the floor. He watched Natalie as she looked through the bodies for any supplies. She had a few burns from the lasers on her, but she didn't seem to be phased by the damage. "Tell me, kid, how long have you two been travelling together?"

"I think it's been three days… Maybe four… I'm not really keeping track…" She mumbled as she grabbed a laser rifle and placed it in her backpack.

"Hmmph…" He walked around the room, picking up some ammo himself. "Hopefully he'll learn to keep his anger in check, it's not good for someone to leave their partner behind."

"Yea, this is the first time it's happened." She walked over to a desk, looking through the drawers, pushing her hair behind her ear. "I know he's used to all the combat, but… I'm new to all this."

"You're doing a pretty damn good job, then." He smirked a little. "Surviving even one day out there, I don't think I would have done it if I wasn't built the way I am." He paused a moment, watching her cross the room to another desk. "Something you're looking for?"

"I need something to tie my hair back…" She huffed as she tried to pull a desk drawer open. "It keeps getting in the way when I'm trying to shoot."

"Here," Nick handed her a hair clip from his pocket "you can borrow this. Take care of it, though. It's important to me."

She looked at him with a slight questioning behind her eyes, but grabbed the clip anyways. "Thanks, I will…" She pulled most of her hair back, leaving her bangs tracing her brows. "Kind of a strange thing to hold sentimental value."

"Well, for some people a pile of dirt could hold sentimental value, given the right circumstances." He began to move forward. "Come on, we don't want to take too long."

They tried to move quickly, which was easy, considering all the synths, turrets, and most of the tripwires had been taken care of along the way. They ended up reaching what looked to be Kellogg's personal quarters. Everything was trashed, they could only assume Nate had thrown everything around. "Was he looking for something?" Natalie questioned as she stepped into the center of the room.

"Doesn't look like it…" Nick cleared his throat a little. There was muffled shouting down a hall leading outside of the room.

"Where is my son!?" When they walked into the room, Nate was on top of Kellogg, throwing punches. "Tell me where my son is you motherfucker!"

Kellogg smiled up at him through bloody teeth, "You can die knowing your son was in a better place." He gave a small laugh, blood spluttering out. "A little older than you expected, but-" Nate threw another punch, making Kellogg groan in pain.

"Stop, Nate!" Natalie ran over to him, a horrified expression on her face.

"He might have answers he can give us!" Nick shouted to him, looking over all the battered synths lying across the floor.

"No! He took my family from me!" Nate was preparing another slug when Natalie grabbed at his arm. "He deserves to die…" Nate trailed off, beginning to feel a heat sweep over his face. _I won't cry… Not in front of this bastard… Stop it._

"Please, calm down. We need to at least interrogate him or something…" Natalie looked over Kellogg's face for a moment. His face was battered where Nate landed a couple hits on him. "Nate, come on…" She tried to tug at his arm to make him stand up.

Nate slammed his fist on the ground one last time, his jaw clenched in anger. "He won't talk…" He stood up slowly, his body feeling sore from all the physical abuse. He turned to face Nick, "What do you know about The Institute?" He tightened his fists, staring at Nick intensely.

"Not much," He shrugged a little. "Except that they're one big secret in its own."

"Bullshit…" Nate began to stalk over to Nick, who was reaching for his pistol slowly. Natalie stepped towards them, Nick put his hand up, signaling her to stand back.

"Calm down, Nate." He warned. "What's going through your head right now?"

"Kellogg said the institute took my boy… You're a synth, you _have_ to know how to get in there." He held eye contact with Nick. "You better not be holding out on me…"

"I'm not… and unfortunately, the few things I _do_ remember involve them pulling me apart and putting me back together. They tried to wipe my memories of that place…" His gaze was serious. _He's telling the truth._ Nate thought. "Now relax… I can get put back together, but you can't…"

Kellogg rolled onto his side, coughing as he let out a laugh. "The… Institute can't be found…" He groaned, reaching for his pistol. "Like I said… The Institute finds you…" He leaned on an elbow, attempting to scoot away. "Now… I'm going to… get out of here…" He spit at the ground, blood-covered saliva.

"No, you're not." Nate began to make his way back towards Kellogg, ready to start hitting him in a split second. Kellogg quickly pulled out his pistol, pressing the gun to Nate's abdomen as he hunched over him.

"I already told you, this only ends one way…" a loud, deafening gunshot immediately followed. Nate flinched, everything feeling numb for a moment. He waited for the sensation of pain to creep over him. From the corner of his eye, he saw Natalie pull out her gun, firing a couple rounds into Kellogg. Kellogg's gun went off again, missing Nate.

Nick was running towards him, his mouth moved, but Nate couldn't hear any of the words he was saying, his ears still ringing from the bullet. Everything felt like it was moving in slow motion. The pain began to ache over his side. He looked down, blood beginning to smear across his vault suit. The bullet didn't hit anything vital, barely an inch from the outer edge of his abdomen. He turned to face Natalie, her face was an almost deathly pale white. "Hey…" He could hear his own voice, the sound returning to his ears. "I'm fine…" He groaned to Nick before he could register everything that was going on.

Then he saw it, the blood that was pouring from Natalie's abdomen. Nick ran to her, placing his hand over the area, "Natalie, focus!" She looked around with glazed eyes, a pained expression on her face. "Nate! Hey, did he get you too? Nate!"

He stared at Natalie, not responding to Nick. All he could see was Nora. That same pained expression as the blood poured from her body. The same look in her eyes as she experienced that unbearable pain. She never knew what it was like to be hurt that way, not before Kellogg gave her that pain and took her life. Nate felt a sadness wash over him. Everything was beginning to hit him all at once, the fear, the anger, the melancholy. _Stop it._

"Use a stimpak." Nick ordered as he grabbed a couple stimpaks from his pocket and tossed them to Nate.

Nate immediately jabbed one into his muscle, watching the wound begin to close. "Here, we need to get it near the wound." He leaned Natalie backwards, she let out a yelp of pain as her core stretched out, causing the wound to spout more blood. "I'm sorry." He whispered as he tugged at the zipper of her vault suit, pulling it slightly past her wound. He stuck the needle near the wound, the muscle underneath it twitched as he did so.

Natalie threw her head back, swearing loudly as she felt the sensation of heated pain turn to a cool, sharp sting. Nick looked worriedly down at her. "She may have lost too much blood."

"Is there anywhere nearby we can go to?" Nate pulled up his pip boy map.

"With a doctor? Our best bet would be to head back to Diamond City." Nick zipped her suit back up.

"Do you think she'll make it?" Nate looked over her face intensely, tears streaming down her face. "Natalie, look at me?"

Her eyes slowly moved to him, her head staying still. She gave a small smile to him.

"Hey, are you ok? How do you feel?" Nate pushed her bangs out the way, she felt cold and sweaty.

She closed her eyes a little, her mouths lightly open as she mumbled the words. "I'm fine… It's ok, hon…"

Nick looked at him with urgency. "We need to hurry. Give her this Med-X." He frowned a little. "Normally I don't condone drug use, but this should help her with the pain. It should also keep her from bleeding more."

Nate carried her the entire trek back to Diamond City, trying to keep her awake as best as he could. "Keep talking to me, Natalie…" He huffed as he tried to ignore the soreness in his own side.

"Remember when… we… uh, went to… the lake…" She mumbled in a giddy haze of drug use crossed with blood loss. "We had sex under that big tree…"

"Let's talk about something else…" Nate felt himself slightly embarrassed to be hearing her secrets, but anything that kept her talking.

"Then you… proposed under those stars…" She slurred, her head leaning back in Nate's arms as walked hurriedly with her. "Like those." She pointed her finger weakly at the sky. "You said as many… stars… you'd love me as long as there were as many stars…" She smirked a little. "It's… two hundred damn years… two goddamn years." She let her eyes close slowly. "You… still…"

"Natalie, don't go to sleep." Nate shook her a little bit. She groaned in pain.

"We don't have too much longer," Nick told him.

"I think she's passed out." They moved swiftly past Hangman's Alley, cutting in between buildings to avoid enemies. They finally reached the gates of Diamond City.

"Open the gates, Danny!" Nick shouted. The gates shifted open. Nick ran ahead of them, Nate's arms were beginning to get sore. Luckily, Natalie wasn't very heavy. Her light frame made her easy to carry, but the hike had started taking its toll on Nate.

Nick returned to Nate as he was halfway to the medical center. He grabbed Natalie quickly, Doctor Sun already had his lab coat on and blood bags ready. About an hour passed before they heard anything from the doctor. Nate waited at Takahashi's noodle stand, staring at the lights around the city. Nick approached him, lighting a cigarette. "She's gonna be ok. Weak for a couple days, but mostly fine. I rented you a room at the Dugout Inn. You can stay there, Doc is gonna keep an eye on her overnight."

"Thanks, Nick." Nate rubbed his eyes. Thankfully, the pain from his gunshot wound had already disappeared.

"Let me ask you a question," Nick said as he lit a cigarette, "this anger you've got in you, have you always had it?"

"If you were in my situation, how would you feel?" Nate didn't mean to retort. He couldn't help but be defensive. "I had my whole family taken away from me, my entire life stripped away."

"Well, I haven't been in your exact situation, but…" He took a drag from his cigarette. "Well, I'm not exactly a normal person. You see, I was taken as a copy of the old world Nick. The original Nick."

"You mean you're from my time?" Nate raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Not exactly. My memories are, but this body I'm in. The Institute created it. They gave me Nick's memories, thoughts… feelings." He sat in the barstool next to Nate. "And for the longest time, after I found out what I was. I had this anger. Angry at the Institute. Angry at _myself_ , even. My entire existence was a lie, I was created in some lab for god-knows-what to do god-knows-who."

"I see…" Nate intertwined his fingers as he propped his arms on the counter. "You seem like you're doing pretty well off, despite all you've been through."

"Well I learned that there's no point in just being angry all the damn time. I decided to try and do some good with my life, instead of trying to get revenge on those who ruined it. What I'm trying to say is… Just be careful." He looked genuinely worried. "You've got people depending on you, and if you let that anger guide you, you might hurt them more than you think."

Nate nodded his head slowly, letting Nick's words sink in. He couldn't help it at times. His rage. It was mostly due to the bottled up emotions he had, but he couldn't just _let_ them out… He would appear weak. How could he support anyone if they thought he couldn't handle his emotions? Maybe Natalie wouldn't have been hurt. Maybe they could have found out more information if he hadn't ran ahead. He let out a deep sigh.


	8. Chapter 8: Down Memory Lane

(Sorry for such a late update. I've been picking up a lot of shifts at my job so it kind of set me behind. Hopefully I'll get to where I'm on a normal upload schedule, maybe where I upload twice a week. Also, extra long chapter to make up for the wait. Thanks again for the reviews and favorites and everything. I really appreciate it! Hope everyone is enjoying reading as much as I am writing!)

Chapter 8: Down Memory Lane

Natalie was dreaming again. Dreaming about the night at the lake. She straightened her dress as she leaned against his shoulder, laying back on a blanket he had lay out for them. "Never done it outside before…" Natalie gave him a sly smile.

"Me neither…" He placed a kiss on her forehead. "Natalie no-middle-name Graham… Where do you see yourself going in life?"

She frowned at the question, thinking of where she even stood in life. "I haven't even thought about it much…" She ran her fingers up his stomach. He wasn't wearing his leather jacket today. _Must have something on his mind if he's forgotten his favorite jacket..._

"I have…" He looked up at the stars, reaching an open hand towards the sky, feeling a slight breeze wrap through his fingers. His blue eyes practically sparkled under the moonlight. "I realized something… I realized that… I'm probably gonna be stuck in this _damn_ city for the rest of my life…" He clenched his fist in the air, a saddening glaze covering his eyes.

"That's not so bad…" Natalie snuggled closer to him, beginning to feel cold from the air. "I like this little city, being here with you." She looked up at him with hopeful eyes.

"Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't like being with you… I just… I want adventure…" He rubbed her arm, trying to warm her up.

She was saddened at the thought of him leaving. Her getting left in the dust while he enjoyed his life somewhere else, maybe even _with_ someone else… She didn't want to hold him back, though. "So go have an adventure. Where do you want to go?"

"Las Vegas," He said without skipping a beat, "maybe spend a couple weeks gambling my cares away." He chuckled a little. Without warning he stood up, walking towards the edge of the lake.

"What's wrong?" Natalie gave cocked her head with a questioning look. "Wait- is there a bug?" She gasped, running from the blanket to meet him.

He laughed at her as she fell against him. "No, there's not a bug…" He smiled at her, his beautiful, warm smile that always made her heart skip a beat.

"So, Vegas, huh? You're going to walk down the strip, take in all the sights. You might even get into the Lucky 38," She said with a slight taunting tone.

"Oh, definitely," He wrapped his arms around her. "I'm already a big winner, so they'll have to let me in."

"How so?" She squinted her eyes at him, a playful smile across her lips.

"I hit the jackpot with you, Nat." That smile again and this time his eyes were peering down on her as he held her tight. His smile disappeared, a serious look crossing his face.

"What is it, hon?" Natalie's brow furrowed in concern.

"Come with me…" He said with a deep, smooth voice.

"What?" She blinked. He couldn't be serious, all her family, everyone she ever knew was here. She shook her head, "No, no, I couldn't…"

"Come on, Natalie… I don't like that you let other people have such… _control_ over you." He pushed her hair behind her ear, studying her face as he spoke. "I know they're your parents, but… you can't just stay with them forever… You'll need to get a husband, start your own family…"

Her heart sank a little. "It's just that… They're all I've got…" She let out a deep sigh.

"You've got me…" He leaned in and gave her a small kiss. "Marry me…" Her hazel eyes met his blue eyes and she felt herself melting. The memory began to fade as she woke up.

Nate shook Natalie's shoulder gently, trying to wake her. The surgery table had blood splattered over it, but he somehow doubted it was actually Natalie's blood. Doctor Sun was preparing some chems to be sold for the day. "Make sure she doesn't exert herself too much," he ordered as he twirled some fluid in a flask. "It's important she stays hydrated."

"Thanks, Doc." He gently patted Natalie's shoulder, she was beginning to wake.

"Yea…?" She slowly opened her eyes, squinting at the light above her head. "Where are we?"

"Back in Diamond City." He helped her sit up slowly. "You feel ok?"

She rubbed her eyes, yawning a bit. "Mostly sleepy, a little sore..."

"That would be the effects of med-x." The doctor stepped over to examine her as she orientated to her surroundings. He flashed a light over her pupils, watching them dilate. "You should feel completely better by tomorrow. For now, you will still feel a little hazy. Stay hydrated and rested up."

"Thank you, sir." She gave a small nod. Nate handed her a bottled water. "Oh, do you have any elastic bands?" She asked Doctor Sun before he left them. He reached into his chemistry desk, grabbing a couple out. She nodded in thanks, pulling the clip Nick gave her from her head. She braided her hair back, a few of the shorter strands hanging loosely around her face. "So, what's next on the list?" She said with a slight grimace on her face, noticing she was still sore from the previous days activities.

"Nick talked with Piper and thinks we might be able to get somewhere using Kellogg's… brain."

"Brain?" She almost let out a laugh. "How would we do that?"

"Well… if you're up for it, there's a place called Goodneighbor where a doctor Amari stays. She knows how to… extract… memories." He tried to find the least gruesome way to explain.

"So we're going to take Kellogg's dead body to this doctor?" She swung her legs over the side of the gurney. "Will that even work? Will his memories even be there anymore?" She paused a moment before getting up.

"She doesn't really _need_ the whole body…" He reached a hand to help her stand up. She took a moment to steady herself.

"So we go and… _scoop_ up the brain…" she grimaced a little more, mostly at the pain, but also at the thought of scraping brain bits. "… and bring it to Goodneighbor?"

"I've already got the things we need…" He gave a nervous laugh. "So whenever you're ready to go, we can head to Goodneighbor."

She scrunched her nose in disgust. "That's gross…"

"Well, he doesn't really need it anymore…" He gave her a smirk, recalling back to when they first left the vault. She gave a smile in return.

Nick lead them through the streets, this time Piper decided to join them. She was eager to get that interview out of Nate. She went over the details with him, since she only knew a quick overview of everything that was going on. She even went on to ask about Kellogg and if the institute was involved for sure. After going through the list of question's she asked the last one "What would you say to someone who's lost a loved one and might be too scared, or too numb to the world, to go look for them?"

Nate didn't answer immediately, trying to think of a good way to word it. "No matter how much you want to give up, don't. You have to have hope." His expression turned into a solemn one. "That you'll see them again. Or at least know the truth."

Natalie watched him, studying him for a moment as he spoke. She knew he was thinking back on what Kellogg said, about how his son was alive… How he was older than they'd expect.

She suddenly remembered the hairclip she had been borrowing. "Nick, here's that hair clip…" Natalie handed it to him. "I found something else to hold my hair with."

"Thanks, kid." Nick gave a smile, carefully placing the clip back in his pocket.

"Want to share the sentimental value behind that clip?" Natalie asked curiously.

"Well, I suppose a story wouldn't hurt." Nick chuckled. "So, two hundred some odd years ago, there was a man named Nick Valentine who lived in Boston."

"You're from before the war, too?" Natalie asked with a shocked expression.

"Sure am, kiddo. Well, my memories at least. They, for some reason, took a copy of the old Nick's memories. He was an officer, real honest man. Great detective instincts, too. Anyways, he had a gal he was planning to marry. Loved to tie her hair back with this clip. Lasted her a good couple years, too… Before…" He trailed off, stopping himself. "This is the only thing I've got from before. I'm surprised it lasted this long."

"Where did you find it?" Natalie asked.

"It was in my old desk," He smiled, pulling the clip out to examine it. "I felt like I should hold on to it, in remembrance of the old Nick and his life." He cleared his throat, sticking the clip back in his pocket. "Now, I have to warn you. Goodneighbor is not for the faint of heart." Piper nodded in agreement.

"What kind of stories do you have from there, Piper?" Nate gave grin to her.

"Oh, geez where do I start?" She went through a mental list. "Well, I guess I should warn you, before we get there. The mayor is a ghoul."

"A what?" Nate questioned, remembering Preston had mentioned them when he first met him at the Museum of Freedom.

"Wow, you are one lucky duck to not have encountered a ghoul out in the commonwealth. Well, they're irradiated people. Most of the time they just come out looking really messed up, but all their memories and functions are intact. However…" She paused a moment, trying to find the best way to explain it. "Sometimes I guess the radiation is too much, rots their brains."

"So what kind are we dealing with in Goodneighbor?"

"Well, if his brain is rotten, it's definitely not from the radiation. Most likely from the chems." She gave a nervous chuckle. "But he's definitely not something to be afraid of… For the most part."

"For the most part?" Nate repeated with a skeptical tone.

"Well, just… Make sure you don't get on his bad side. Otherwise he's harmless." She shrugged.

Nick rolled his eyes, thinking of the ghoul in question. "Yea, he's definitely something…"

After a moment of silence, Nate tried to pick back up on the conversation, not wanting the silence to drag out the walk to the city. "So, Piper. Have you always lived in Diamond City?"

"No, I used to live in a small settlement. Me, Nat and my dad." She smiled at him.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened to your father?" Nate didn't want to pry, but he was interested in learning more about the reporter.

"Well, he used to work with the militia force in that town. 'Keeping the raiders off our backs and mirelurks out of our latrines' as he'd describe it. He turned up missing one day, turns out his captain, Mayburn, sold out to a bunch of raiders. He was going to take half the profit and burn off, leave us to the birds." She sighed heavily. "Dad wasn't going to let him do that, he found out and was going to turn Mayburn in, but Mayburn got to him first."

"That's horrible." Natalie thought back to how she lost her dad.

"I wasn't going to let him get away with murder, though." She said with confidence. "I tried going to the mayor, but he wouldn't listen. So instead I wrote up posters and plastered them across the town." She drew the words out in the air with her hand. "'Wanted for Gross Dereliction of Duty. Captain Mayburn,'" She gave a smug smile. "Sure wanted to talk to me then. We gave Mayburn the boot and the whole city defended itself from the raiders."

"Wow, Piper. You saved those people," Nate said in amazement.

"No, the truth saved them." She smiled, "Knowing what's out there. How to defend yourself from it. That's what saves lives."

"That's what you try to do with your paper, huh?" Nate smiled back at her. "I think that's amazing."

Piper blushed a little at the compliment. Natalie peeked at her, giving a squinted look before she smirked at her. Piper cleared her throat, trying to ignore Natalie. "Well, here we are."

Nate and Natalie shot each other glances, staring at the bright glowing sign. They pushed open the door, admiring the historical buildings that surrounded them. A man standing near the entrance of the gate saw them walk in, smiling a devious grin as he recognized Nick. "Well, well, it's the detective. Tracking down another wayward husband to his mistress?"

"Why, someone stand you up?" Nick retorted. Piper snickered behind him.

"Tryin' that, what d'ya call it? _Evasive language_ , on me?" He lit a cigarette. "Who are you guys? Valentine's new dicks-in-training?" He gave them a smug smile.

"Well, we're hiring, but I don't think you'd measure up." Nate said sarcastically.

"Listen, buddy we've got things we have to do," Piper spoke up, growing tired of the whole ordeal.

"Here's the deal," The man ignored her. "You start handing over your stuff or accidents start happening." He took a drag from his cigarette. " _Bad_ accidents."

"Whoa, whoa time out!" A man dressed in red garment began to approach them.

"Hancock…" Piper mumbled under her breath.

"Someone steps through the gate the first time, they're a guest." He spoke smoothly and with confidence. "You lay off that extortion crap." He pointed demandingly at the man.

"You're soft, Hancock." He grumbled, throwing down his newly-lit cigarette on the floor. "You keep letting outsiders walk all over us, one day there'll be a new mayor in town."

"Come one, this is me we're talking about… Let me tell you something," The ghoul walked towards the man, one arm casually reached towards him.

"Oh, brother," Piper groaned and covered her face.

Immediately after Piper's comment Hancock pulled a knife out, shoving it deep into the man's abdomen. He gave a second stab, as if to be sure he would be dying from the wound. The man groaned as he crashed to the floor. "Now why'd you have to go and say that? Breaking my heart over here." He pulled a rag from his pocket, wiping his blade clean. "You guys ok?" He gave a friendly smile to the group.

"Great to see you again, Hancock." Nick and Piper mumbled simultaneously.

He tilted his hat a bit, then turned to Nate and Natalie. "And you two?"

"Just fine…" Nate muttered, still in a slight shock at the quick turn of events.

"Right, well, Goodneighbor's of the people, for the people, you feel me?" He outstretched his arms as if to make a big presentation. "Everyone's welcome."

Nate paused a moment before answering, nodding his head slowly, "Yea, we feel you." Natalie gave a nervous smile, unable to find words to say.

"I can tell I'm gonna like you already," He gave a small chuckle as he began to walk away. "Just consider this town your home away from home." He paused a moment, turning to give a final glance to the group. "So long as you remember who's in charge…"

This time both Piper and Nick groaned. "Sure does like to make a show of things." Nick smirked. "Well, let's meet up with Dr. Amari."

They entered the dimly-lit hallways, following into the main room that housed different lounge chairs with domes covering them, old TV screens set up in every one. 'Memory Loungers' Irma, the owner of the building, called them. They proceeded downstairs where Doctor Amari was working on some things of her own.

"Well, it's a long shot…" She pondered over the proposal after Nick and Nate went over the details. The entire time Piper was scribbling notes on a scrappy looking notebook. "We're going to need to use you as a vessel, Nick. Someone else will need to use the lounger to mentally walk through the memories."

"I'll do it…" Nate said without skipping a beat. "It's my son… I'll do it."

Amari nodded slowly. "Well, I suppose let's set everything up." She turned towards Piper and Natalie. "I don't mean to be rude, but we shouldn't have so many people in here. This is going to require a lot of focus."

"Of course, Doctor." Piper said politely and they both turned to walk out the room.

"Good luck, Nate." Natalie smiled nervously at him as she left the room. Amari shut the door behind them, locking it. "Well, what is there to do in Goodneighbor?"

"What _isn't_ there to do?" Piper said jokingly. "Well, it's five o' clock somewhere. Want to get a drink?"

Natalie quietly followed behind Piper, walking into an old subway station which was now labeled The Third Rail. There was a bouncer standing near the entrance, when he saw Piper he immediately stepped in front of the gates. "No, no, no Piper, I'm not letting you in here this time."

"Aw, come on." She whined. "It's been like three months since the last incident."

"Incident? Piper you were harassing that man. I can't have you bothering the customers. Charlie will kill me if he sees you here." He crossed his arms, stepping forward to get her away from the door.

"Let me talk to Charlie myself, I'm sure he'll understand." She gave a charismatic smile as she pulled out a bag of bottlecaps. "I'm sure he'll be pretty ticked if he misses out on all this business."

The bouncer kept a stern stare, then looked behind her shoulder to see Natalie standing distantly from them. "Fine." He grabbed the bag, taking out about twenty caps. "I hear anything, anything at all, you are going to be kicked out of Goodneighbor. Welcome to Goodneighbor, Miss." He smiled at Natalie.

"Yea, yea" She grabbed the bag back from the bouncer, walking through the gates into the pub.

"You sure know your way around people," Natalie said with admiration in her tone. "I guess that comes with being a well-known reporter?"

"Well-known, yea. Not really for all the greatest reasons." She clenched her teeth nervously. "Besides, you just have to know what makes people tick. Once you know what drives them you can usually get what you need from them." She directed Natalie to sit in a barstool next to her.

"Piper!" A robot buzzed loudly as he floated over to the two. "What did I tell ya 'bout comin' back 'ere?" He snarled in a robotic voice.

"Come on, Charlie, I've been through this with the guard already." She landed the bag of caps on the counter. "He already gave me the warnings and everything. I'll be keeping to myself tonight."

"Fine, but I hear one peep out of ya, I'll be handlin' your exit myself." His buzzsaw turned angrily on its axis.

"I gotcha." Piper gave him an innocent smile. "Now, give us two glasses of your strongest!"

"Oh, I don't think…" Natalie began to object. She didn't even drink at parties when she used to go, before the war that is.

"If you're not drinkin', you're not stayin'." Charlie warned.

"Come on, kid. It'll be fine." She slid the glass over to Natalie, taking a quick swig from her glass. She scrunched her nose. "Whoo-whee that is some… _interesting_ texture…"

Natalie tried not to focus on the taste as she sipped on her cup. She was never big on drinking, finding any flavor of alcohol displeasing. After the first glass, however, she was starting to feel it. The second and third glass went down easier. Before she knew it, she was swaying, laughing with tears in her eyes at the crazy stories Piper had to tell.

"Yea, you are looking at an official acolyte of Atom." She snorted as she laughed at her own story.

"Wow, you're so brave." Natalie sipped more from her cup.

"Not on purpose, though. More like I just had to be." She ran her thumb over her glass. "I guess that's how all of us usually end up being brave, though."

Natalie nodded silently. "I know I would never consider myself brave before this." She paused a moment, and then decided to go with the question on her mind. "So, I saw you looking at Nate." She slurred her words slightly.

"What?" She began to blush. "No-no I was… It was just hot. Outside, that is." She stumbled over her words in a fluster.

"Piper!" A man with a green duster approached her. Her brows furrowed as she heard her name being called, immediately recognizing the voice. "When are we going to have that one-on-one interview?"

"Oh, Maccready, never in a million years." She groaned, rubbing her forehead in agitation, her blush disappearing. He just chuckled in response.

Natalie looked at the man's face, thinking she saw Jeff for a moment. She swallowed hard, turning away, a blush crossing her own face.

"Who's your friend, Pipes?" He nudged her, trying to coax a response.

"My friend is not interested," Piper gave in reply, poking him with a finger.

"Relax, I'm just trying to make friendly conversation." Maccready squinted at Piper. "My name's Maccready." He reached out a hand to give a shake. She turned to see his hand, meeting his blue eyes. She felt a familiar feeling rush over her. He just looked so much like…

"First or last?" Natalie asked as she shook his hand. He looked at her with a puzzled expression for a moment. "Your name, is that your first or last?" There was a flirt tone in her voice, she couldn't help it. All the alcohol was clouding her brain. "Although Maccready would definitely be an… odd first name." She hiccupped a little as she spoke.

"Oh, right. Last." He gave an awkward smirk to her. "Your name is…?"

"Natalie Graham." She said openly, she felt a strange feeling in her gut. Butterflies maybe? Or just the alcohol getting to her system.

"Are you new here?" He sat in an empty barstool next to her. Piper ordered another round of drinks.

"Yea, you could say that." She smirked.

"Well, if you ever need a bodyguard, I am willing to help. With payment, of course. Got to make a living somehow." He called over Charlie, ordering a drink himself.

"Are you from around here?" She questioned, sipping on her fresh drink. His blue eyes were looking her over. Those eyes looked so familiar to her. _Stop thinking so hard on it… Jeff's gone…_

He shook his head, grimacing at the sting of whatever drink he was having. "No, no… I travel from town to town. Paid mercenary." Natalie looked at the sniper rifle slung on is back. "I just so happened to stop in Goodneighbor to look for work."

Natalie stopped for a moment… Was she flirting with him? Part of her excused it as friendly conversation, but there was something deep in her stomach building up. It had to be the resemblance he shared with Jeff. She swallowed hard, she must have had a shocked expression on her face, because Maccready was looking at her with a questioning stare. "Piper," She spoke hastily. "Can you take me to the restroom?"

"Yea, are you feeling sick?" Piper grabbed her elbow, taking her to the restrooms. She ran over to the sink, staring at her reflection. She looked at Piper in the reflection, a worried expression covered her face. "What is it, Nat?"

"It's just…" She tucked her hair behind her ear, noticing a blush on her cheeks that had mostly likely been there since she began speaking with Maccready. "I was engaged…"

Piper tilted her head in confusion. "You mean before?"

This was the first time she spoke about it and didn't feel like crying. "Yea… He wasn't able to make it into a vault." She swallowed hard. She felt a sadness, but it wasn't overwhelming her like it usually did. The thoughts were making her sober up a little, however.

"Well, what's the problem?" She said in a big-sister tone.

"Well, I was starting to kind of feel… Like… I don't know." She stumbled over her words.

"With Maccready?" Piper's eyes widened. "Well, it is strange, but… Well, if you're gonna have a crush on someone I'd rather it be him than some other jerk from around here." She said with a small laugh.

"It's not a crush…" Natalie rolled her eyes. "I guess all this stress is getting to me…"

"Oh…" Piper nodded in understanding. "Well, just remember to always use be… safe."

Natalie felt an intense heat rush over her face, she turned her head quickly to Piper. Maybe it was the alcohol affecting her judgement, but she was _not_ being helpful. It's not like she hadn't been in a sexual relationship before, but that was only with one person. After committing to a relationship, she had never thought about sleeping with someone else. Jeff was the only person she had been with. She wasn't even considering sleeping with Maccready… was she?

"All I'm saying is, it's ok to blow of some steam. Maccready… He may be a little flirt machine, but even _he_ has standards. So I know he's not just running around sleeping with everyone…" She crossed her arms, leaning against the bathroom door frame. "He's probably your safest bet for a one-night stand." She sighed, walking over to give Natalie a pat on the back. "Life is short out here in the wealth… You've got to make what you can with it. Find happiness in what you can."

"Yea…" She sighed. It was definitely the alcohol messing with her, but she thought Piper could be right. She had almost died at least twice the past couple of days. Maybe she _did_ need to blow off steam. These feelings were probably those of lust, not love. It's not like she was committing to the guy, if he even agreed to go as far with her. Life was short, like she said.

She walked, towards her seat next to Maccready. He smiled at her a little, "Everything go well?" he said jokingly.

"Excellent." She smirked at him, throwing back the rest of her drink. "So, tell me. Do you know any places to stay the night here?" She let her confidence show through, obviously being brought forth by the multiple glasses of god-knows-what she had been drinking.

Maccready choked a little on his own drink. "Uhm, yea…" He coughed a little. He looked questioningly at Piper, as if she were going to run him off. She just shrugged her shoulders, then gave him a thumbs up. A blush traced his face and he finished up his drink. "Want me to show you where?"

"Yea, sure." She carefully stood up, her legs wobbling a little. Maccready reached an arm around her waist, mostly to steady her walking. She placed her hand in his open hand, their left palms meeting and she felt that familiar rush of emotions again.

Nate sat up from the memory lounger, thinking over everything he had just been through. Having to relive the loss of his family and learning new information towards finding his son. Everything that was happening was like some sort of sci-fi movie and it was hard to grasp everything that was happening.

Doctor Amari handed him some water. "Nick is already upstairs." She had a saddened expression on her face. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that again…"

"I know…" Nate drank some of the water. "It had to be done… Kellogg had information about a rogue scientist staying in the glowing sea. I'm guessing that's the best place to look next."

"Just be careful, I don't know of any side effects this procedure can cause… This hasn't been done before…" Amari warned him.

"I understand." Nate stood slowly from the lounger.

"Make sure you find something to protect you from all that radiation. You'll be walking in to ground zero. Radiation suits would be the best bet. Power armor, too." She went back to her work.

"Thanks again, Dr. Amari." He shut the door behind him as he walked out. When he went upstairs he saw Nick sitting on a bench leading towards the exit. "Hey, Nick."

Nick looked up at him, a blank expression on his face. Then a voice broke through, "Hope you got what you were looking for inside my head." Kellogg's voice gave a small chuckle. "I was right, should've killed you when you were on ice."

Nate grabbed at Nick's collar, jerking him up from the chair. "What the fuck did you just say?"

"Wh-what are you talking about?" Nick looked at him, an angry expression forming on his face. "Let me go, Nate!" He gripped at Nate's hands.

"Is this some sort of sick joke!" He growled through clenched teeth. That rage was building inside of him.

"I have no idea what you're talking about…" He pried Nate's hands off his collar, pushing him back. "You better watch your step."

"You were… Kellogg…" Nate looked at his hands, immediately feeling regret. His left hand was scratched up from Nick's metal hand. "I swear, this better not be some cruel joke."

"I promise you, kid. I would never do that." Nick reached for a pack of cigarettes in his pocket. "Amari said there might be some 'mnemonic impressions' left over…" He lit a cigarette, offering one to Nate.

He cautiously took it, his hands still shaking in anger. "I'm sorry…"

"It's fine." He puffed on his cigarette for a moment, suspiciously looking over Nate. "Well, let's go get the girls."

They walked into the Third Rail, the smell of alcohol and smoke filling the air. Piper was still sitting at the bar, but now she was leaning on her wrist, falling asleep. "Piper," Nick patted her back gently. "Where's Natalie?"

Piper let out a goofy giggle. "She's cutting loose." She snorted as she laughed, trying to sit up. "Guess we got a little carried away."

"Great," Nate huffed. "Come on, Piper. Where's a place where we can get some rooms?"

"Hotel Rexford," Nick replied as he and Nate placed Piper's arms over their shoulders. The walked slowly to the hotel, Piper slurring her entire speech in a drunken haze. "Hey, Piper." Nick tried to keep her focused for a moment. "Do you happen to know where Natalie might have went? We wouldn't want her getting into _trouble_ with anyone." Nate looked at him with a worried expression.

"Oh, she's fine… That guy, Maccready… he has her…" She mumbled. "Here, probably." She pointed weakly to the sign of the Rexford.

"Who's Maccready?" Nate questioned.

"He's not someone to be too worried about. But, they might be spending some _alone time_ together…" Nick phrased it as politely as possible.

"She just met him, is that really such a good idea?" Nate said with an angry tone.

"Well, it's not uncommon. At least the kid's around her age… I think…" Nick looked puzzled. "How old is she?"

"Nineteen." He had a look of agitation on his face.

"Well, he's around twenty-two, twenty-three. Anyways, random encounters such as this aren't really rare in the Commonwealth. People make do with the time they've got…" Nick shrugged as Nate grumbled in anger. They entered the hotel and walked up to the counter. "We need a room, Clair."

"Nick, sorry to say but our only room has been rented out." The woman leaned onto the desk.

"Really? By who, if I may ask?" Nick questioned.

"A young couple in love." She said sarcastically. "Someone you're looking for perhaps?" She perked her eyebrows in question.

"Actually, they might be a couple friends." Nick looked at Nate, who had an angry frown on his face.

They somehow managed to make it up the stairs, Piper completely passed out as they dragged her feet between them. In the hallway stood a man with a green duster, smoking a cigarette. "Maccready?" Nick looked up at him.

"Oh, Nick." He let out a friendly laugh. "What are you doing back in Goodneighbor?"

"Well, we were on a business trip… We're uh, looking for a friend. Heard you were with her, actually." Nick felt Piper's whole weight fall on him as Nate stalked over to Maccready.

"You better not have done anything to her!" He started to reach for him, ready to pull him up by the collar.

"Whoa, relax!" He stepped back quickly, dodging Nate's hands.

"Nate, you've got to calm down!" Nick ordered.

"What if he took advantage…?" He glared over his shoulder at Nick.

"I would never! Come on, Nick. You _know_ me. I'm not that kind of person." Maccready held his hands up defensively. "Look, I'll show you." He lead them to the room, Natalie was passed out on the old dirty mattress. "To be fair, _she_ was the one who wanted to… come here. After taking her up here she said she didn't want to… y'know. So I decided to just leave her alone. I was worried someone might try to sneak up here, you know how people in Goodneighbor can be. So I wanted to wait until she woke up in the morning before I left."

Nate walked over to Natalie, looking at the letters sprawled out on the bed. She looked like she might have been crying before she fell asleep. "Natalie?" Nate shook her shoulder. "Hey, can you hear me?"

She stirred a little, her head tilted up so her eyes could meet his. "What time is it?"

"God, I don't know… Still night-time." He started to gather up her papers, stacking them into a pile.

"He turned into a ghoul…" She muttered as she lay her head back on to the mattress. "One of the letters… He says his skin was scarred… He was worried what I would think of him… He had been alive all this time, though…"

Nick sat Piper in the armchair in the corner, then pointed at Maccready, ordering him out of the room. Nate turned back to Natalie "Isn't that good news, though?" He placed the gathered papers into her backpack.

"Well, except he went to the… Mojave… New Vegas, that's what he called it. Must be post-war Las Vegas… Said it was time for him to move on. For him to let me go." She ran her fingers across the mattress. "I was going to sleep with him, you know. That guy…"

"Yea," Nate said in a hushed tone.

"I just couldn't bring myself… I needed closure before… Before I moved on… So I said no…" She let out a small laugh. "He's a gentleman, stepped out the room without question." She waved her fingers in the air, as if dusting off something or shooing a fly away.

"That's a relief…" He sighed. "Listen, Natalie, you've got to be more careful. What if this guy wasn't as nice as some of the other people out here?"

"Piper said she knew him…" She groaned.

Nate looked over to the sleeping woman who was now curled up on the couch. He groaned "Well, that's not the point… We'll talk about this more tomorrow." He ran his fingers along his brow, felling tense from everything that was happening.

When he walked out the room, Maccready and Nick stood leaning against the wall on the opposite end of the hallway.

"I didn't do anything," Maccready crossed his arms angrily.

"I know." Nate patted his shoulder gently. "Thanks for being a… gentleman, I think, is what she called you."

Maccready blushed a little. "Yea, well… It'd be wrong to do otherwise. I guess I'm gonna head back to the third rail now, no telling how many customers I may have missed out on."

"What?" Nate perked his eyebrows. "Are you an… escort?"

Nick let out a small laugh, Maccready's face turning completely red. "No, I'm not a-" He pointed to his rifle on his back. "I'm a mercenary. Hired gun."

"Oh, honest mistake." Nate chuckled along with Nick. "Well, thanks for everything…"

"Yea, no problem… If you need anything else, my starting rate is two hundred and fifty caps." He chuckled as he pointed finger guns at them, disappearing behind the corner of the wall.

"So, what's the next step?" Nick asked, beginning to walk down the hallway.

"Well, our next lead is in the glowing sea… A former institute scientist is hiding out there, he should have more information about getting inside." Nate answered as he walked next to Nick.

"Glowing sea, huh. That's going to be dangerous… Sure you want to take Miss Natalie with you?" His piercing yellow eyes traced Nate's face.

"I really don't want to... There's no way she would let me go without her. She's determined to help me out." Nate rubbed the back of his neck. "I'll figure out something…"


	9. Bonus Chapter

(Expect a new full chapter either late tonight or sometime around noon tomorrow. Figured I'd thrown in this little chapter to help the wait. Thanks for all the reviews, favorites, everything. The encouragement really helps me to keep going!)

Maccready stood at Daisy's Discount shop, leaning over the counter as he chatted to her. "I can't believe that guy tried to rob you."

"Good thing you were there to stop him, Maccready." She said with a light rasp in her voice. "You're a good kid, you know?"

"Thanks, Daisy. That means a lot." He smiled softly at her. She was one of the few people in Goodneighbor he didn't mind talking to, mostly because she had amazing old world stories about TVs and Corvegas. He could only dream of driving one of those.

"So, what's this I hear about you hooking up with a girl last night? You better not be getting into trouble." Daisy said with a tone of chastisement.

He immediately began to blush. "No, I didn't. Well, I almost did, but she changed her mind."

"Did you do something wrong?" She questioned.

"No, it's not that. She said that… There was someone she was engaged to. She felt kind of guilty because she didn't know if he had survived."

"Is she from a raided settlement or something?" Daisy asked with a confused look.

"I don't think so. I'm not exactly sure where she's from. Anyways, she just said she needed some closure. Needed to know if he was really… Gone... I guess." Maccready swallowed hard, thinking for a moment. "Yea, but she, uh… She didn't want to just jump into things."

"That's good. She's probably looking for commitment, and that's the kind of girl you need in your life. I know it's hard letting go, but-"

"No, I don't want to go there…" He stopped her. "I loved Lucy. She was the best thing that ever happened to me…"

"Well, do you think she would want you moping around all the time? I think she'd want you to find someone. A mother for Duncan. Someone for you to love." Daisy placed a comforting hand over Maccready's. He kept looking down, hiding his eyes under his hat. His stomach growled in the silence of the moment. She laughed a bit. "Are you hungry?"

"I don't have any extra caps to spend right now." He groaned, trying to ignore his rumbling stomach.

"Here, have some of these," She handed him a box of snack cakes.

"Thanks, Dais!" He quickly opened the box. "Man, I used to eat these all the time when I was a kid."

"So when are you going to see that girl again?" Daisy inquired, leaning into her chin as she propped an elbow on the counter.

"Probably not anytime soon. Most the time when things like this happen girls think guys are just trying to get in their pants." Maccready bit into one of the cakes.

"Was that not what you were trying to do?" She squinted her eye at him.

"No, not at first. I figured when she'd offered I should take the chance. Most girls that walk through Goodneighbor don't look so… well put together, I guess?" He said with a slight questioning tone.

"So apologize to her, I'm sure she'll understand if you just explain." Daisy watched Maccready as his eyes followed a pair of people walking down the street. She glanced at the people for a second. "Ohhh," She said with a sly smile. "That's the girl, huh?"

Maccready's cheeks turned red. "What? No, it's not." He didn't want Daisy to prod her with questions if she happened to stop by her store.

"Go, Maccready. Now's your chance." She encouraged him.

He was quiet for a moment, biting into his lip while he tried to decide if it was worth it. "Fine, but just because I don't want things to be awkward if we run into each other again." He tried to act casual as he walked up to the pair. "Hey, leaving so soon?" He said jokingly.

"We'll be back, got some business to take care of." The guy she was travelling with spoke. Maccready couldn't remember his name for the life of him.

He decided to jump right into it, otherwise he might just chicken out. "Hey, Natalie, right? Listen, I uh… I wanted to apologize…" He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, trying to think of what to say. "I wasn't just trying to… get in your pants. I felt like maybe I shouldn't have… I don't know…" He trailed off, not sure how to phrase it.

"You didn't do anything wrong." Natalie reassured him. "I was just… trying to relax. I was kind of jumping steps." She gave him a smile. Those soft lips, the way her hazel eyes squinted slightly when she smiled. He felt himself beginning to blush. "So don't apologize." She tucked a loose hair behind her ear, Maccready swallowed hard. _I should let them go now_.

"Right." He cleared his throat, trying to focus. "Well, you guys be safe out there." He waved them off. He went back to Daisy who was grinning at him. "Happy?"

"Are you?" She retorted.

He tilted his hat to cover his face. "Embarrassed, mostly…" he grabbed another snack cake. "But yea, happy too."

"Don't worry I'm sure you'll see here again." Daisy rolled her eyes. "Back in the day, girls would only give looks like that to special fellas."

"Things must have been way different back in the day." He chuckled a little.

"Not when it comes to love," She said as she began to organize some of the products behind the counter.

 _Not when it comes to love_ , Maccready thought to himself.


	10. Chapter 9: Anger and Tears

Chapter 9: Anger and Tears

It was late afternoon by the time Natalie was waking up. Piper was on the floor, still asleep. Natalie walked to the door, peeking through it to see if anyone was there. "Hey, Piper." She tried not to be too loud, not knowing if she might be suffering from a hangover after the night of heavy drinking. Piper didn't move from her spot on the floor. "Where's my backpack…?" Natalie whispered to herself as she closed the door, looking around the room. She found it tucked under the bed. She pulled it out, looking through the items she had inside. Her gun, a laser rifle for back-up, some leather clothes she was able to loot whenever they were fighting at the Museum of Freedom, some food… the notes from Jeff.

She pulled the notes out, looking for the one she _thought_ she might have read last night. "Maybe it was a dream…" She mumbled, looking at the dates on the letters. She found the most recent letter written February 15th, 2276. About ten years before Natalie and Nate woke up from the pods.

 _February 15_ _th_ _, 2276_

 _Dear Natalie Graham (Deceased),_

 _It's been two hundred years. I know you couldn't have survived all these years in that vault. I used to go there every couple of months to see if they let you out. Then years went by, ten, twenty… Up until it had been eighty years and I knew there was no way you were ever coming out. I guess I'm writing this as some sort of closure before I go. Well, here's a summary of my life since those bomb fell._

 _The first year was the hardest, I got really sick from all the radiation and it changed me. Dad and I turned into what they call ghouls. It was hard to find a place to call home, most people didn't trust us. They thought we might attack them. We eventually set up a small farm near Sanctuary Hills. We stayed there for about one hundred years before a group of raiders came and destroyed our crops and took all we had. We were lucky we didn't get killed, but I think that's because they expected us to fix everything and start farming again. We didn't. Instead, we traveled from town to town. Most settlements needed a little work done, so we did what we could. Sometimes this meant killing people, other times it was just delivering things to another settlement._

 _We travelled for about fifty years before we settled into a place called Diamond City. It was pretty great there, if people didn't like us they just ignored us. They didn't try to attack us, for the most part. Well, until last night. A group of people followed us outside the gates of Diamond City. We were going to travel to a settlement on the other side of town and they somehow found out when we were leaving. There were five of them and there was no way I could stop them. They put a gun to my dad's head and demanded we hand everything over. I gave them my stuff, but dad… They shot him because he didn't want to give up his stuff._

 _My dad's dead. I'm alone now… I just… I wish he would have handed his stuff over. Those bastards, they just walked back into the city as if nothing happened. One of them even turned to me and said "That's what you freaks deserve. To be put down like the dogs you are." I waited for them to leave before I started to head back to Red Rocket. I managed to bring dad's body out here to bury it._

 _I decided to leave the commonwealth. I'm going to head to New Vegas. I've heard there's plenty of work out there. I just figured it's time. Time to move on. Time to say goodbye to everything. I've got nothing left for me here in Boston. I'm going to start all over, maybe even change my name. I'm not who I used to be. God, even if you did walk out that vault today and met me here where I stand, I don't think you'd ever be able to love me like before. This world has done its number on me and now I'm just waiting for my time to come. I'm sorry I never got to see you again, Natalie. I loved you._

 _-Jeffrey Anthony Lamb_

Natalie felt her eyes welling with tears. She couldn't gather her thoughts. With shaky hands she flipped the papers over, reading another scribbled note written on the back.

 _Happy two hundred year anniversary._

She choked back tears, covering her mouth with her hand as she tried to keep the noise to a minimum. She hated this world. Everything that was in it. It had taken everything she loved and held dear and shredded it.

"What's wrong?" Piper grumbled in her sleep.

Natalie turned to see if she had woken up. Luckily, she was still out, she didn't want anyone to see her this way. She looked at the letters in her hands. Folding the last letter written to her, she carefully placed it in a small zipper pocket. She began to rip of the rest of the pieces, a fiery anger in her movements. All of a sudden she heard a knock at the door.

Nate ended up falling asleep on an old dirty mat lying on the streets of Goodneighbor. He didn't get much sleep, not only from the uncomfortable bedding but also because of the constant nightmares. He just kept seeing them over and over again, his wife being killed, Shaun being taken away from him, Kellogg's grin as he refused to give up any information… It kept going the same way, Nate would be in the middle of beating Kellogg to death. Nick would take Natalie away as she cried, but Nate couldn't stop himself. Then he would hear a gunshot. When he looked down to check himself for a wound, there would be a gun in his hand and Kellogg would be gone. When he looked back up, Nora was standing in front of him, gasping as she began to bleed to death. He would wake up immediately after seeing her face twisted in pain. He would sit up quickly, trying to snap back to the real world.

Whenever he couldn't deal with the nightmares anymore, he decided to walk outside Goodneighbor. He bought a metal baseball bat from Kleo and decided to do some target practice on feral ghouls roaming around an old graveyard.

He enjoyed the feeling of danger that came with fighting, the adrenaline rush. Plus, it helped keep his mind off of things. He didn't have to think about Kellogg, the Institute, and Shaun… Nora. He just had to focus on surviving and putting all his strength into swinging the bat.

He hit one of the ferals on the leg, causing it to topple to the ground. He raised the bat high, grunting when he smashed it into the skull. He heard a noise behind him and swiftly turned, swinging the bat as he did.

"Woah! Watch out!" Hancock dodged the bat swiftly.

"Wh-what are you doing out here?" Nate gasped as he caught his breath.

"Hey, I could ask you the same thing." Hancock looked over him suspiciously.

"I'm just… letting out some steam…" Nate rubbed the bat on his pants leg, cleaning off most of the blood from it.

Hancock looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. "Just had to be sure… Sometimes raider settlements will come out to Goodneighbor to scope the place out. I wasn't sure if you were maybe…" He trailed off.

"You think I look like a raider?" Nate questioned.

"All I know is you've got a fire in your eyes. That can be a good thing, if you're on the right side of the fence." Hancock walked over to one of the feral ghoul bodies, kicking it as if to make sure it was dead. "I've got a job for you, if you're up for it?"

"What's that?" Nate asked, wiping the sweat off his brow.

"I've heard about some things going on at the Pickman Gallery. There's usually raiders out there, but things have gone… quiet." He squinted his eyes, looking at Nate with a pondering expression. "Like uncomfortable post-coitus quiet. I'd like for you to go and scope out the place. See what's going on."

Nate looked as if he was weighing the idea. "How much are you paying?"

"Two hundred caps."

"Two-fifty." Nate said immediately after.

"Fine, but I'm not going any higher." He chuckled a little. "Gotta love a guy who likes to push his luck."

Nate knocked on the door at the Rexford Hotel. He heard small footsteps head to the door. He waited until the late afternoon, hoping Natalie would get enough rest to not be too hungover to head out. When she opened the door her eyes were red, almost as if she had been crying. It could have been from her hangover, though so Nate didn't ask about it. "Hey, we've got a mission if you're ready?"

"Yea." She mumbled softly. "Let me get my stuff together." She shut the door. Nate leaned casually with his back against the wall, listening to Natalie's shuffling behind the door. After a few moments she swung the door open. She completely changed her outfit, wearing a leather jacket and pants with her leather armor fastened over it. Nate raised his brows, impressed with how edgy she looked. "Ready." She started walking down the hallway.

Nate watched her for a moment. There was something different in her stride. Realizing he was getting left behind he quickly followed after her. "Hey, slow down." He grabbed her shoulder, making her turn around. She was looking at the floor, her eyes glazed with something he couldn't quite describe. "Natalie, are you going to be ok…?"

"Yea…" She said quietly, a harsh look still on her face. Then she breathed deeply, giving a slight nod before she repeated herself. "Yea." They continued on.

When they passed the stores near the entrance of Goodneighbor, Maccready noticed them and stopped them. "Hey, leaving so soon?" He was munching on a box of fancy lad snack cakes.

"We'll be back, got some business to take care of." Nate informed him.

"Hey, Natalie, right? Listen, I uh… I wanted to apologize…" He rubbed the back of his neck nervously with his free hand. "I wasn't just trying to… get in your pants. I felt like maybe I shouldn't have… I don't know…" He trailed off, stumbling over his words.

"You didn't do anything wrong." She reassured him. "I was just… trying to relax. I was kind of jumping steps." She gave him a soft smile. "So don't apologize." Nate looked suspiciously over the two, watching the silent interaction as. He couldn't help but think of when he first met Nora.

"Right." He cleared his throat, a slight blush on his cheeks forming. "Well, you guys be safe out there."

As they left the town, Nate gave Natalie a sly smile. "He likes you…"

"Maybe…" She said dryly.

"What, you don't like him? After you almost took him to bed last night?" He teased.

"I was just trying to get my mind off of everything." She was getting angry. "It's ironic you're joking about this. You seemed really upset about it last night. I heard you outside the room."

Nate's smile quickly disappeared. "Hey, I was just trying to watch out for you. What if he tried to take advantage of you?"

"I can defend myself, you know." She was practically stomping her feet as they continued their walk.

"Well, so far it hasn't seemed that way." Nate immediately regretted the words. He didn't mean that.

She turned around, pointing a finger at him as if to say something, but instead huffed and kept walking. "At least I'm trying…"

He followed after her. "I don't mean it like that, I just-"

"Well, what else could you mean? I'm sorry you're having to babysit me."

"Natalie, I'm not babysitting you…" He groaned, mostly at himself for saying such a stupid thing. "Look at me…" He stopped walking, she continued without him. "Please, just stop."

She slowed down before halting completely. She turned around, he expected her to be pouring tears, but instead she had an anger in her eyes. Her lips twisted into a tight frown before she spat the words at him, "I don't have anything left." She crossed her arms again. "Nothing, not my family, not my friends. At least you have your son to look for."

"Your fiancé, you said they went to the Mojave-"

"Yea, to forget about me!" She said angrily. "He's gone. I didn't even get a chance to look for him and now there's no way I'm going to be able to find him. He's changed his name. I don't even know what he looks like anymore since he turned into a ghoul." She tapped her foot impatiently. "I hate this. I hate this whole fucking world." She hadn't even the slightest look of remorse on her. She was just… angry. "Look, let's just drop this for now. We have work to do."

When they made it to the Pickman gallery Natalie didn't waste any time facing the enemies. She used Nate's bat to take down everyone that ran towards her. Although she wasn't doing enough damage to kill the raiders, Nate was able to easily finish them off with a headshot. She would use all her strength in each swing, grunting behind the effort she put on. Nate wasn't sure how to feel about everything that was happening. Part of him was happy to see her fighting so hard, but part of him feared she was going to end up hurting herself in her haphazard strategy.

They returned to Goodneighbor rather late into the Night. Natalie was sore from all the swinging and Nate was tired from the lack of sleep the night before. They walked with heavy feet into Hancock's office. He was sitting behind a desk in a rather comfortable looking chair.

He smirked at them as they walked in. "So, good news is you're back in one piece. Now, what's the bad news at Pickman Gallery?"

"Apparently Pickman was killing raiders that wandered too close to his home. He was severing the bodies and... Painting with the blood." Nate informed him. Natalie grimaced at the memory of the paintings.

"So I'm assuming this Pickman fellow isn't going to be a problem?" Hancock leaned back in his chair, throwing his feet up on his desk.

"Well, we uh…" Nate trailed off. He must not have wanted to tell Hancock they let a maniac go free.

"We let him live," Natalie cleared her throat. "He'll keep killing raiders just because he despises them. There was no reason to kill him."

Hancock looked over her skeptically before letting out a small chuckle. "Well, let's just hope he doesn't grow bored of raiders and start looking for innocent civilians." He reached into his pocket and tossed the bag of caps on the end of his desk.

Nate grabbed them cautiously. "I guess let us know if you have any other work."

"Gotcha," Hancock tilted his hat to them as they left the room.

"That guy is weird." Nate whispered to Natalie

"Yea, but you have to admit there's some strange charming quality about him. I guess it's that crazy colonial outfit." She chuckled lightly.

They were quiet for a moment before Nate decided to speak up again. "Are we ok? I just… I don't want you to think I feel like you're a burden."

She went silent, reflecting over her own emotions. "Yea," She said quietly, a part of her still upset. "You never told me, did you find anything out about Shaun?"

"Well, I have to go to a place called the Glowing Sea… It's where the Nuke first hit." He swallowed hard. "There's a lot of dangerous monsters out there…" He looked at her from the corner of his eye.

She noticed the worried expression in his face. "I'll sit back on this one." She said with a bit of a sigh.

"It's not because I don't think you can handle yourself…"

"I know, you just don't want the risk…" She sighed heavily this time. "I get it."

Nate packed the assault rifle he had just finished assembling. He had to stop by Diamond City in order to meet Nick. He tried to get Natalie to go with him so he could bring her back to Diamond City, but she decided to stay with Piper in Goodneighbor. Piper promised to keep her safe. He also asked her not to leave town, but he somehow knew that wasn't going to happen. He just hoped they wouldn't get into too much trouble.

He knocked on the door to Nick's agency. Ellie answered, stepping aside to let him in. "Nick, Nate's here."

"Thanks, Ellie. Hold the fort down while I'm gone." Nick said as he grabbed his coat off his office chair.

"Always do." She shut the door behind them as they left.

"So, did you take Natalie back to Sanctuary?" Nick asked, noticing the girl wasn't with Nate.

"No, she's in Goodneighbor still." He sighed. "At least Piper's with her."

"Yea, I suppose so. But Piper tends to get into pretty big messes, too." Nick lit a cigarette, offering one to Nate.

"No thanks," He placed a hand up to deny it. "She wanted to come, I know she did. She said she would stay, though. She might have just been mad at me, though."

"Say something wrong?" Nick asked.

"Well… I just… I don't know why, I guess I was just mad. I told her she wasn't doing a good job defending herself." Nate said.

"Huh, so I guess she might have just wanted some space. Although I don't know if that's a good or bad thing." Nick chuckled a little.

"Yea, me neither. I think she just doesn't want me to worry about her out there, maybe. The Glowing Sea… Everything everyone says sounds terrible. I'm just worried that I can't protect her out there."

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but why are you so… devoted to this girl? At first I thought she might have been your daughter, but after being around you two I know you're not related." Nick peered under the lid of his fedora. Those glowing yellow eyes analyzing Nate's response.

Nate shrugged his shoulders a little. "I agreed to take her to Red Rocket at first, I wasn't planning to take her any further. When I found out she didn't have anyone, I just… I couldn't leave her. I mean this girl is by _herself_. Hell, she was still living with her parents when everything went down. The only worries she had in the world were probably planning her wedding. She didn't know how to function out here on her own."

"So you wanted to take her in? Maybe you could help her survive?" Nick puffed on his cigarette.

"I don't know…" Nate kicked at the ground a bit as he stepped. "I just wanted her to know that she has a friend. Someone that would watch her back. God knows I needed better friends than I had at her age." He sighed again, thinking over everything. "It's crazy how much our lives changed. I know this world is tough now, but I don't want her to get too damaged. I'm worried one day she might snap."

"What about yourself?" Nick asked. "Do you ever worry you might snap one day?"

Nate swallowed hard. He was always trying to push his sadness away, replacing it with anger. "Maybe…"

"I don't mean to sound like a dad, but… I'm just worried about that temper of yours." Nick said with genuine concern in his tone.

"I know… I'm going to start working on it…" Nate scratched his cheek, realizing he was already growing quite a bit of stubble. "Thanks for talking to me." He said after a moment. "I know we've only met, but I do feel like I can really trust you. Despite the whole Kellogg voice thing." Nate laughed.

"Yea, I'm sorry about that again. I haven't had any problems since so I suppose it was just an effect from the whole procedure." Nick turned to face Nate directly. "I want you to know, and Natalie, too, that it's not just you two alone out here. I'm here to help you out in whatever way I can, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone in the process."

"Thanks, Nick. That means a lot." They continued their walk, preparing to head to sanctuary to get Nate's power armor before they made the journey to the Glowing Sea.


	11. Chapter 10: Break

(This chapter is following Natalie so it's a bit more on the romantic aspect for now. The next Chapter will follow Nate. Hopefully I'll be finished with the next chapter by tomorrow evening. Thanks for the support! Reviews, Favorites, Follows, all are much appreciated!)

Chapter 10: Break

Natalie stared at the dusty old ceiling of the hotel room. She focused on a particular particle that fell slowly in the dim sunlight. It was late afternoon, her first week without Nate by her side went by slowly. She was worried, not about his safety, but more that he would leave her once he finished everything he needed to do in the Glowing Sea. There was no reason for him to come back to her unless he needed to, for her safety. In Piper's watch there would be no danger, so there was no reason for him to hurry back to Natalie.

There was a knock on the door, then Piper's muffled voice as she twisted the knob slowly. "Hope you're decent"

"Never." Natalie meant it in a joking tone but the word came out harsher than expected.

"Got a good story out of one of the neighborhood watch fellas. He enjoys reading my paper, even asked me to feature him." She chuckled lightly.

"That's great, Pipes." Natalie mumbled quietly, looking for the speck of dust that she lost sight of.

Piper stood at the foot of the bed, her hands on her hips. "You alright, kiddo?"

"Please, don't call me that." Natalie grumbled.

"Sorry…" She turned her lips into a small pout before asking the question. "So how are you holding up?"

"Fine, I guess…" Natalie mumbled in response.

"Worried?" She sat at the end of the bed, next to Natalie's feet.

"Yea, a little…" She sighed softly.

Piper tapped the bottom of her foot. "Come on, let's get a drink."

Natalie sat on the old tattered sofa, silent. She sipped on her drink every now and then. Piper ended up getting them some light drinks, just so they had something while they listened to the music. Magnolia sang softly in the dimly lit subway station. Whitechapel Charlie could be heard every now and then, talking to patrons as they sat at the bar.

There was a round of applause at the end of the song. Natalie lazily clapped her hands together. To be honest, she wasn't even listening to the music anymore. She was already tired, ready to get some sleep. But Piper was enjoying herself and she didn't want to ruin the fun for her. So she sat quiet, finishing up her drink.

"Want another?" She asked as she tipped her own glass back.

"Sure, why not?" Natalie handed her the empty glass to bring back to Charlie.

While Piper was away, Maccready must have spotted her from across the room, because he ended up in the seat next to her, a drink in his hand. "Hey, how's it going?" He asked, a flush over his cheeks. He had been drinking. "I haven't seen you in a while… You've been busy?"

"Not really," She smirked at him. "I've had a really slow week."

"Oh, geez, not me." He pushed the edge of his hat up, making his face a bit more visible under the cap. "Just had a… Huge payout!" He threw his hands up exaggeratedly.

"That's great." Natalie chuckled a bit.

"You mind if I buy you a drink?" He asked, throwing back his own drink.

"Oh, Piper's already grabbing something." Natalie leaned forward, her chin in her hand as she giggled at the way his face fell in disappointment. "Don't worry, you can get the next round."

"Great, sounds great." He swallowed hard, leaning back into the corner of the couch. "Hey, I know my… apology sounded kind of weird earlier… I just wanted to say sorry if it seems like all I wanted was sex." His words slurred a bit as he spoke, a blush ran over his face.

Natalie blushed herself at his statement. "No, it wasn't even you. Besides…" She covered her cheek with the palm of her hand, as if the hide the blush somehow. "Honestly, it was me… I told you, it's fine." She stumbled a bit as she tried to reassure him.

"I know, but I can't help but feel… Maybe I shouldn't have even talked to you… I think it would've been better…" He looked down at the floor, avoiding her eyes.

"Don't feel that way… You helped me take my mind off of things, for a while, anyways." She smiled at him.

Piper sat the drinks down on the table in hurried movements. "Hey, Natalie. I'm going to get an interview from a couple of the caravaners that just walked in." She slid her drink towards Maccready. "I'm going to be a bit, so don't wait up." She winked at Natalie.

Natalie felt a blush crawl over her cheeks. _Damn it, Piper_. Natalie cleared her throat before taking a sip from her drink. "Maybe we can, uh… start over, I suppose?"

"Yea, yea… Let's, uh… Let's do that…" Maccready smiled at her softly. "So, Natalie… Where are you from?"

"Boston, actually." She tried to ease herself up. She still had butterflies, but they were just making light conversation. _Relax_ , she told herself. "I actually grew up near Lexington."

"Really?" Maccready looked surprised. "How have I never seen you? I mean, everyone usually passes through Goodneighbor at some point."

"Well, uh… Unless you have a time machine, it would have been a little difficult to run into me before a couple weeks ago." She nervously laughed, pushing her hair behind her ear.

Maccready's jaw fell in shock. "N-no way." A grin crossed his face shortly after, he covered it with his hand, a snicker escaping underneath it. "There's no way. How? You're from… From back…?"

"Before the bombs fell, yea." She laughed along with him, realizing how crazy it must sound. "I know it sounds insane, but I'm from Vault one-eleven. Apparently they were doing some crazy-"

"Experiments." Maccready finished for her. "I actually grew up next to a vault, believe it or not. Some pretty terrible things came out of that vault." He grimaced at the thought.

"Really?" Natalie mimicked his expression. "I mean, I suppose it's not that hard to believe, considering all the things I've seen so far."

"Yea… Wow, I mean… I knew you were from a vault, because you were wearing the jumpsuit before. I had no idea that Vault-Tec even had such technology, though… Like something from a comic book…" He trailed off in thought. "Hey, so did you ever get to read any of the old comic books back then?"

Natalie laughed a bit, trying to remember if she ever read them. For some reason she never really felt interested in them, but Jeff had a huge collection. "Well… I know my fiancé had a ton of them. I never actually read them myself…"

"Ah, man. My favorite things to find out here are those comics…" He grew quiet for a moment, a serious expression crossing his face. "So, your fiancé didn't make it…?"

"Well, actually… He did…" She turned away from him a moment, worried over what kind of expression she might be showing. "He turned into a ghoul…" She sighed heavily, not feeling any remorse in the statement. "… but he doesn't live in Boston anymore… I think he went to the Mojave."

"Would you ever try to find him?" He asked softly. "I mean, the Mojave isn't too far…"

"I don't think so… He changed his name and everything. Said he wanted to move on after all these years… God, sometimes I wonder about what if he found someone else…?" She turned back to face him, unable to read his expression.

"So, does that make you worried?" Maccready asked as he sipped on the drink Piper left for him.

"No, not like I thought it would. It actually makes me feel better…" She smiled softly. "I mean, that way he isn't suffering anymore, waiting for me…"

Maccready nodded his head slowly, "Yea, I get what you mean." He looked as if he was taking something into deep consideration. "Hey, want to go for a walk?" He asked after a moment.

Natalie didn't answer right away, looking to see if Piper was anywhere to be found. _She disappeared, that cunning..._ "Sure…" She set her drink on the table. "As long as you have me home by ten." She said jokingly.

"Is that an old world thing?" Maccready chuckled.

As they began to exit the bar, Natalie took the chance to ask Maccready a couple of questions of her own. "So, you said you grew up near a vault? Which one?"

"Eighty seven. It was in the Capital Wasteland."

"Capital… Where is that?" Natalie squinted her eyes in a questioning look.

"Oh, uh… Washington… I grew up in a place called Little Lamplight."

"Like the Lamplight caverns?" Natalie gasped, recalling a memory from her childhood. Her family was visiting D.C. because her dad needed to attend a meeting with some very important military figures. She remembered exploring the caves with her father by her side. Taking in the wonders of the structural rocks.

"You've been there? Well, I'm sure it looks different now." He held onto the rail as he stumbled up the stairs. "Sorry, guess I've had a bit too much to drink…"

"You're ok. Should we just stay here?" She was worried about him having a hard time walking around the streets, and there was no way she could drag him if he passed out on her.

"Well, I've got an idea, if you're up for it…?" He gave her a sly smile.

They were on the roof of the Old State House. Luckily, Hancock was distracted by some mayoral business and hadn't even noticed them walking into the building. Not that he'd mind their actions, anyways. Natalie was surprised that Maccready climbed onto the roof without falling over the edge. Somehow, he even managed to pull her up onto the roof as well. Luckily, the roof wasn't too slanted so it also made it easier to walk across.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, what with you being… intoxicated?" Natalie asked nervously.

"Well, I'm going to have a harder time getting down now that I'm up here." He sat down. He leaned back, staring up at the stars in the sky. "Wow, this is beautiful." He rested his head against the palm of his hands as he used them for a pillow.

"Yea, it really is." Natalie stared up as she pulled her knees to her chest, staring at the black sky freckled with lights. "It's crazy that despite all the shit this World has been through, the sky pretty much looks the same."

"Really makes you feel small, huh." Maccready sighed. "I noticed that the big guy hasn't been around almost all week… Did something happen?" He asked softly, treading lightly on the question.

"Oh, Nate… He went out to the Glowing Sea… He's trying to find his son, you know. We managed to get a lead to someone who could help us out there. I guess he's just having a hard time making it back." She looked at her hands, scratching at an old scab she hadn't even noticed before.

"Are you worried about him?" Maccready peered at her from the corner of his eyes.

"No, not about him. I'm worried that… I'm going to be left here…" The scab began to bleed, she smeared the blood across her palm, trying to wipe it away. "I'm not a very good fighter… I think I hold him back more than anything…"

"Don't think like that…" Maccready said with genuine concern in his voice. "You've got to keep your head up."

"Yea, I guess so…" She mumbled, still trying to wipe the blood. She was just making a mess with it.

"If you need any help I can… Maybe I can take you for some practice shooting? I mean… I can do a couple lessons on the house." He cleared his throat. "It'll be like one of those free trial things."

"Oh, so do I have to pay in advance for the other lessons." She joked.

"Only if you feel like I'm a good teacher." He joked back.

It felt nice being next to him. Feeling small in the big, scary world. Feeling as though she weren't important enough to mess things up, yet still important enough to keep trying. When she met his eyes she felt something familiar wash over her. She wanted to kiss him, but she blamed that mostly on the scenery and the way his eyes looked over her with a haze of alcohol. Blue eyes, beautiful blue.

"I got something on my face?" He joked, tilting his hat down to cover his eyes as he leaned back again.

"Wh-what?" She blushed, turning her eyes to the sky quickly. "No, sorry… I guess I was just thinking too deeply." Everything about his appearance was familiar, but his personality was so new to her. She wondered if she was feeling more than just lust.

They sat up there for a few hours, Maccready even trailed off to sleep. When she woke him up to help him down the roof he was mostly sober. They parted ways at the entrance to the Rexford Hotel. Before she walked inside she stopped herself. "Where do I meet you, for the free lesson?" She asked quickly.

"Huh?" He rubbed his eyes a bit. "Oh, uh. Meet me in front of Daisy's store." He gave a little smirk before waving goodbye. "See you tomorrow."

"Ok." She smiled at him, waving in return.

When she returned to the room, Piper was sitting on the bed, legs crossed as she watched Natalie with a suspicious look. "How'd it go…?" She asked with a tone of excitement.

"What do you mean? I spent the whole night by myself after you left." Natalie said sarcastically.

"Fine, I'll just let you tell me when you're ready." Piper gave a knowing smirk.


	12. Chapter 11: Breaking

(Sorry I took so long getting this posted, for some reason my computer didn't save and I had to retype the whole thing, then when I was going to upload it my internet spazzed and caused my computer to shut down... again. Anyways, it's all good now. It was hard to do this chapter, just because I didn't want it to feel like too much of a walkthrough, which is why I left things out and added things in. I'm doing my best. Next chapter will most likely be a longer one. Thanks again for all the support!)

Chapter 11: Breaking

Nate groaned under his power armor, feeling the weight of the Deathclaw as it attempted to scratch at him. Nick, who was wearing a power armor frame, tried to shoot at the beast. He missed most of the shots as it thrashed around, trying to knock Nate off his feet.

"I can't get a clear shot!" He said as he tried to approach them.

"Fuck!" Nate shouted as he slammed his fist into the beast. He urged the armor's strength against the behemoth. "This is the third fucking one we've… fought!" He grunted as he managed to slip from the deathclaw's grip.

"Eat this, you irradiated lizard!" Nick shouted as he threw a grenade. The explosion caused the beast to fall over, giving Nate the opportunity to smash his fist into the face of the beast. Nate pulled a knife from his pocket, stabbing into the creature's head. It let out a roar of pain before stammering off and falling onto the ground. "You think it's dead?"

"God, I hope so," Nate said in a gasp as he caught his breath.

They continued on, tired from the combat and walking. This was the third time they had been out here, and Nate felt like each time they came there were even more enemies. They kept having to return to resupply, since Nate would easily use up all the stimpaks within the first mile of walking in the Sea. Luckily, there were a lot of travelling merchants that passed near the glowing sea in order to reach some of the smaller settlements.

He was frustrated with all the fighting, ready to find this Virgil guy and get on with things. He was ready to just find his son and return to Natalie. He tried not to think about her while they were out here, it would only worry him. Besides, she was in good hands. He knew Piper wasn't going to let anything happen to her.

They entered what appeared to be a giant crater, avoiding the people that wandered about inside it. They looked drained, dying. Some of them praying in circles around irradiated material. Nate shot Nick a look, but otherwise remained silent. The people didn't seem to notice them, too caught up in whatever rituals they were doing.

As they approached a path leading to the opposite side of the crater, Nick informed him of the cult they apparently walked in to. "Children of Atom, they call themselves. Believe those damned nukes were a godsend." He scoffed. "That they were some sort of sign from the god they call Atom."

"That's an… interesting point of view?" Nate said with a mostly questioning tone.

"Yea, that's a word for it." Nick chuckled a bit. "Look, there's a cave up ahead."

"Think that's where our guy is?" Nate heard a beeping in his suit, the battery was at a quarter strength.

"Sure hope so, otherwise we'll have to make another trip out here tomorrow."

"Damn… I should've bought an extra fusion core." Nate bit into his cheek, regretting being stingy with his caps.

They entered the cave as silently as they could with the armor suits on. There were turrets, but they didn't recognize them as hostile. Nate looked to Nick, who gave him a nod of approval before they continued on.

They turned the corner, Nate almost jumping back at the creature he saw. "What the-?"

"Hold it!" The creature warned in a gritty, deep voice. "Take it slow."

"Who… What…?" Nate tried to find the question.

"I know you're from the Institute." The mutant growled, peering at them through the thickly lensed glasses he wore. "Now, where's Kellogg. Is he trying to sneak up on me?" He peered around for a second, a readying stance. "Well, that's not going to work."

Nate took a step back, exiting his power armor. "Are you...?" He looked over the mutant suspiciously.

"You're Virgil?" Nick finished the question, his synthetic eyebrows raised.

"You know damn well I am, now tell me why you're here." He practically snarled the question out.

"We… Uh… Can you tell us anything about the institute?" Nate asked as he removed the hazmat suit, his vault jumpsuit was underneath it.

Virgil took a bit of coaxing before they were able to exchange information. Turns out the guy would help, he just needed the supermutant antidote that was left in his old lab at the Institute in return for his services. Turns out, even with Virgil's help, getting inside the Institute wasn't going to be any easier.

"You're going to have to kill a courser… Have you ever seen one?" Virgil asked.

"No, I haven't…" Nate looked at him suspiciously.

"Well, they're like synths… Except they're designed to take any runaway synths back to the Institute. They're killing machines, very efficient." He looked up in thought before continuing. "I can pin the location of one on your map, if you give me a bit." He turned and began to press keys on the computer before turning to a radio-shaped machine and twisting the nobs on it.

"Why, exactly, do I have to kill a courser?" Nate looked at Nick, was there something he was missing?

"Because you want to get inside the Institute, remember? Each courser is built with hardware in their systems that lets them relay back and forth from the Institute." He sighed for a moment before slamming a fist on the radio-like box. After a moment it made a couple beeping noises. "The courser chip should allow us to use the molecular relay signal to move you inside."

"Re-what?" Nick asked with amusement.

"Molecular Relay. It's like… teleporting… Anyways, here's the general location for the courser. If you really want to do this, obtain that chip inside its system and bring it back to me. You can use your radio to find the courser's exact location. Just follow the strength of the signal."

Nate entered his power armor, preparing to leave. Nick followed suit. "We'll see you soon, then." He tilted his hat before stepping into the huge machine. When they stepped outside, Nick stopped Nate before they continued. "Are you going back for Natalie now?"

"I don't know…" He was glad Nick couldn't see the worry on his face through the power armor helmet.

"She's going to think something is up, especially since we've already been gone about four days." Nick looked at him with concern.

"I know, but… I just… She's not fit for combat. She's not like me, I've had the training."

"We've been over this. The kid's eventually going to have to find out how to survive on her own. What if something happened to you?" Nick suggested.

Nate gave him a bit of a glare that Nick must have felt through the helmet, because he shifted uncomfortably in his armor. "I know… I know she has it in her to fight. The way she helped take down those guys at the Pickman…" He sighed heavily. "I just don't think she's ready to possibly be on… her own."

"So then what's the game plan?"

"We keep going until we have to go back to Goodneighbor." Nate said with a stern tone.

Nick didn't say anything, just stared with a somewhat solemn look. _It was your suggestion to not take her in the first place_ , Nate thought.

They decided to stop at a red rocket that wasn't too far from the glowing sea. Nate's battery was running low and he didn't want to risk getting stuck in the middle of the commonwealth during the dead of night. As he exited the power armor, he groaned in pain. His entire body felt sore and heavy.

"Why don't you rest up, I'll take watch." Nick told him.

"You sure?" Nate asked as he rubbed his side, feeling tender from the fight with the deathclaw earlier _. I wonder if I broke a rib…?_

"Yea, besides… synths don't need to sleep." Nick posted himself into a corner where he could easily keep an eye on things.

"Thanks, Nick…" Nate found a somewhat comfortable spot to lay down. He stared at the wall, his tiredness sweeping over him. He hadn't gotten much rest, between the constant travelling and the nightmares that kept him awake throughout the nights. He breathed heavily, trying to relax.

That dream again. He was having that dream again, only this time whenever the gunshot rang out, it was him who was at the end of the barrel. Nora was aiming down it. "Why…?" Nate whispered the question, her blank face gave no reply. Another shot rang out, he snapped his head to the left, seeing Natalie holding the gun. "Why…?" He asked again.

Before he knew it he was walking down a hallway. He felt like he was walking for an eternity, before he came upon a door. It looked like his house's door. He knocked on it, the sound echoing into his dream's abyss.

When the door swung open, he entered the kitchen. Nora sat at the bar, drinking her coffee like she did every morning. It was a normal day. Codsworth was probably cleaning in another room, Shaun was most likely fast asleep. "Morning, sweetheart." Nora turned over her shoulder and gave him a comforting smile.

Nate knew it was a dream. Something in the back of his mind telling him it wasn't real, but he couldn't control his body's movements. "Nora, I missed you." He walked to her, wrapping his arms around her as she stood to meet him.

"We should go to the park today, I have some food ready for a picnic." She rubbed his back gently, a numb sensation running along his spine.

"That would be great." He said as he snuggled his nose into her shoulder.

"Don't cry, Nate… It's ok." She said softly, even though he wasn't crying.

He remembered her saying those words whenever she lost the baby. He had held her close, letting her sob into his shoulder. They had already decorated the room, picked out the first outfit she would wear. But all of that was ruined, taken away by some form of fate, and left them in the hospital aching for what could have been. It took months for Nora to go back to normal. Nate had vowed to himself that he wouldn't cry in front of her. She needed someone strong to depend on, and he couldn't be that person if he allowed himself to break down.

He felt a tightness in his chest, a sadness pulling deep in him. Nate wanted to stay like this in his dream, forever. When he turned to look down at Nora again, she was already gone. He was fighting Kellogg again. There was blood everywhere. Nate swung at Kellogg's face again, his fist landing a hit. He kept hitting over and over. Then he felt something grab at his arm, he turned and saw Natalie, tears in her eyes. She looked like a child, the way her cheeks reddened and her eyes glossed beneath the tears welling in her eyes. He felt the tightness grow more in his chest. "No!" He screamed out. "I will not cry, I am not weak!" He swung his hand.

Only this time, it wasn't just in his dream. Nate felt his knuckles land on the concrete floor next to him, stopping his full-throttle punch. He groaned in pain, rolling onto his back as he grabbed his hand.

"What the hell are you doing?" Nick rushed over to him, readying a stimpak.

"Stop, no." Nate said through clenched teeth. "Save that, we might need it later…"

"You probably broke your goddamn hand, Nate. Using a stimpak for that is not a waste." Nick said as he jammed the needle into his forearm. "What were you doing?"

"It was just a bad dream…" He mumbled, feeling the cooling sensation run down his fingers. "Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"You sure you don't have something you want to get off your chest?" Nick went back to his post.

Nate wasn't sure if he wanted to talk about everything. He always felt it was better to keep things to himself. Nick was so easy to talk to, but in the end he decided against it.


	13. Chapter 12: Storm

Chapter 12: Storm

"Where are you heading today, little blue?" Piper asked, noticing Natalie was packing up her backpack.

"Target practice." She finished zipping up the bag, throwing it over her shoulder.

"With who?" Piper smiled at her. "Maccready, maybe?" Natalie was starting to get the feeling that Piper liked playing matchmaker for others.

"Yea, he offered me a free lesson." She smiled back at Piper.

Piper's smile quickly disappeared, as she realized something. "Wait, you can't leave Goodneighbor, though."

"I'm not leaving… I'm just going out for a while." Natalie shrugged.

"No, no, Nat you can't. I told Nate I would keep you safe, keep an eye on you." She grabbed onto Natalie's shoulders, making them face each other directly. "You're staying, ok? Inside the walls…"

"What? Piper, you're not my mom." Natalie scoffed. "'Sides, I can handle myself."

"Listen, you don't know how dangerous it can be out there. Especially in this area, there's tons of mutants and raiders." Piper pleaded to her. "Just stay, ok. What would Nate say if he knew you were trying to leave?"

Natalie bit her tongue, thinking of the man that left her behind. "Probably the same thing as you… But he's not here, so…" She couldn't think of an excuse to go against his will. "Listen, Piper… I think we might need to think about… What if he left me here? If he's not coming back." She looked at the floor boards. "I feel like maybe I was more of a distraction than help."

"Nate wouldn't do that, sweetie. He cares about you." She pulled her in for a hug. "He just wants what's best for you." She patted her back gently. "You're not just a distraction, he just wants you safe."

Natalie didn't hug back, she didn't need to be treated like a baby. She needed the exact opposite, she needed to learn to stand up on her own. "I want what's best for me, too. I think what's best is that I learn to defend myself out there. Thing aren't changing to sunshine and rainbows, and I've got to learn to face what's out there."

Piper pulled back from the hug, her hands resting on her shoulders. "I don't want anything to happen to you, just wait for Nate to get back… I'm sure he'd be fine taking you out for practice."

"Ok," Natalie sighed heavily.

"Now, let's go find something fun to do, _inside_ the walls." Piper said in a mothering tone as she opened the door. Natalie nodded slowly before slowly walking to the door. Suddenly, she bolted off, running past Piper. "Natalie! So help me god, you are not leaving!" She shouted, chasing after her.

Natalie ran out the front doors of the hotel, hearing Clair grumble something about not running around. She darted across the street, heading to Daisy's store. She hoped Maccready was ready to go. She turned the corner swiftly, almost slipping in a puddle as she did. Piper must've went into the Third Rail, probably thinking Maccready was there, because she wasn't directly behind Natalie when she turned to check.

Luckily, Maccready was already at Daisy's. He leaned up from across the counter where he was talking to Daisy. "Ready to go?"

"Yea, sure let's hurry," She said, waiving him to follow her.

"Wait, we can stay in the city if you-" He began to protest.

"No, let's go, hurry!" She said in a panic, seeing Piper cut around the corner. She looked right at her, an angry frown on her face. "Now!"

"What?" Maccready looked confused, but followed her as she darted out the gate. "What's going on, you pissed off Piper?"

"Something like that," She said in breaths as they ran down the ruined streets of Boston. She heard Piper scream her name out, but it sounded like the distance between them was further now.

They continued heading West, outside of the towering buildings. When they reached a forest area, they stopped to rest for a second. "Where are we?" Natalie questioned, wiping sweat from her forehead.

Maccready looked around for a moment, surveying the area. "I think there's a small settlement called Oberland Station northwest from here." He pulled out a compass, turning a bit as he watched it. "So why's Piper so mad at you?"

"Oh, I wasn't supposed to leave…" She pulled out a bottled water from her pack. "Nate wanted me to stay in there until he got back."

"Then why are we out here? We could have practiced within the gates." He said with a bit of a chastising tone, but a playful grin on his face.

"No way, I'm tired of being stuck in that town. Besides, seeing how long it's taking Nate to get back I would've been stuck in there for years…" She kicked at the dirt a bit with her feet.

Maccready let out a sigh, grabbing his rifle off his back. "Well, I guess we should get started…" He handed the rifle to Natalie. "Tell me what you know."

"That you pull the trigger and a bullet comes out." She said jokingly as she looked down the scope of the rifle.

Maccready scoffed, grabbing back his rifle. "Then I've got a lot to teach you."

Nate and Nick were on their way to the Commonwealth Institute of Technology ruins. There were rumors that the Institute lay deep beneath the ruins, unaffected by the bombs. Those were mostly rumors, as was everything else pertaining to the infamously secret organization. Nate looked at his pip-boy, tuning the radio to the frequency that Virgil told him about. They followed the signal strength, leading into Greentech Genetics.

"We should leave our power armor, try to use the element of surprise." Nate suggested, but mostly he just wanted to get out the armor, feeling sore from being crammed inside the metal suit all day.

"If you think so, just be prepared for a fight." Nick warned, the seriousness in his eyes emanating.

They walked into the building, hearing the screams of people. Nate looked at Nick questioningly.

"Whoever they were sent to retrieve must've been putting up a fight." Nick looked around seeing the blood splattered across the floor.

Nate kept walking, the screams still echoing in the building. Every now and then there would be an announcement over the intercom about the courser moving up a level. It seemed like Nate and Nick were right behind him.

"Watch out!" Nick shouted, stopping Nate from walking across the bridge as a man fired shots at them.

Nate quickly fell back against the wall, barely missing the bullets. "Who are these guys?" He asked Nick as he peeked around the corner. They were dressed in military attire.

"Gunners, they're merciless jackasses." Nick groaned. "So don't worry about going easy on them."

"Got it," Nate aimed his rifle, firing at the man.

"Enemies down here!" The man shouted as he took cover.

More gunners ran into the pavilion, standing on bridges from floors above them. Nate grabbed a grenade, angling it to land on the bridge between two gunners. Nick fired at the man who was hiding behind his cover, but quickly hid again as the back-up showed to help the man.

"Got any more of those?" Nick asked as the grenade exploded.

Nate shook his head, "We can do this, we've just got to keep pressure on them." He came out from the corner, carefully walking down the bridge as he shot at the man, hitting him in the head. "Two on the left!" Nate warned Nick as the men walked out on the bridge parallel to them.

Nick shot at them, landing both with headshots.

"Retreat!" A voice shouted out over a speaker. "Re-" A groan of pain erupted over the speaker, followed by a gurgling sound of blood.

Nate darted up the stairs, Nick following quickly behind.

A gunner was running towards them, a look of horror on their face. Nate rammed the butt of his gun into them, knocking them to the ground. They pulled out their gun, aiming at Nate. Nick fired at them, stopping them from shooting at Nate.

When they reached the top floor, there were bodies lying everywhere. Only a couple people were alive, sitting quietly against the wall. A man in a black coat turned to face Nate, a blank expression on his face. Nate looked him up and down, the coat was splattered with blood, but the man didn't seem to have any wounds. "You've been following me." He spoke with a monotone voice. He quickly raised his weapon, ready to fight.

Nate raised his weapon, firing the first shot.

"Great shot," Maccready complimented her as she fired at a glass bottle.

"Thanks," She smiled proudly. "I'm getting pretty good, huh? Might have to set up my own little business." She joked.

"I don't know about all that, but you've got a da… darn good teacher," He paused to correct himself. Thunder suddenly erupted from the sky, both of them had been so caught up with the lesson they hadn't even noticed the heavy clouds rolling in. "We should start heading back."

Natalie frowned, clearly not ready to be cooped up again. "Isn't there somewhere we can stay overnight? I'm just not ready…"

Maccready bit into his cheek in thought. "We can see if the people at Oberland might let us stay?"

They made the trek to the tiny settlement, sprinting in the downpour. However, when they arrived, there were no people there. They walked into the top floor of the small two story home. Natalie looked around, there were no personal belongings. "Guess they moved?" She suggested.

"Suuure…" Maccready agreed sarcastically. He pulled off his duster, tossing it onto an old chair. "We'll go with that."

Natalie squinted at him, "Not funny…" She hated to think that innocent people had been raided. Although that was just how things were now.

"You're the one who wanted to stay out here," Maccready said as he tossed his bag into the corner of the room. "Besides, I am _not_ walking out in that cold rain." He tossed himself on the mattress.

Natalie sat on the floor, going through her bag and reorganizing her things. She looked over her dirty vault suit that was crumpled in her bag, biting in to her lip in thought. "What I wouldn't give for a shower…" She groaned.

"Well, you've pretty much got one out there," Maccready said jokingly.

"I mean a warm shower, like in the good old days." She pulled her hair from the wet, sloppy braid.

"So what was it like, in the good old days?" Maccready questioned.

Natalie didn't answer immediately, she didn't even know where to begin. "Completely different." She finally muttered out.

"Do you maybe have a less vague answer?" He scoffed.

"Well, I could write a novel about all the differences. Do you have a more specific question, maybe?" She retorted, sticking her tongue out at him playfully.

Maccready sat up, moving his legs to an Indian-style seating position. "Fine… How about… the cars? I would've loved to get a chance to drive one of those fancy corvegas."

Natalie bit her lip as she thought about them. "Well, I don't really know. I never got the chance to drive one, my dad was scared of all the accidents kids were getting in to."

Maccready frowned at the answer, obviously wanting more details about the amazing corvegas he read about. He looked deep in thought as he pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lighting one up. "Want one?" He asked, holding the pack to Natalie.

"No, it's fine." She looked over his face for a moment. "I'm gonna change into to something not soaking wet, ok?"

"Go ahead," Maccready pulled his hat over his eyes to give her some privacy.

She rolled her eyes, pulling her jacket off, tossing it onto a wooden crate to dry. Her shirt quickly followed. Before she pulled off her pants, she looked over her stomach. There was a small scar from the gunshot wound that Kellogg inflicted her with. She looked at her forearm, seeing a scar across it from the knife attack outside the Museum of Freedom.

"You'll get used to it," She jumped at the sound of his voice.

"Used to what?" She asked, quickly removing her pants.

"The scars… The pain…" He said. She realized he must've caught a glimpse of her and it made her blush.

"It's fine…" She said as she tried to think of a change in subject, "So, you used to live in Little Lamplight, right?" She pulled the vault suit over her body quickly, zipping it an inch below the dip in between her collar bones.

"Yea, I was actually the mayor, believe it or not." He laughed nervously, clearly embarrassed at the memory. "I know, it sounds crazy, but it was actually just a bunch of kids out there. Nobody older than sixteen."

Natalie's face held a shocked expression, trying to imagine little kids living in the world how it is. "You all must've been pretty skilled." She sat again on the floor, her wet clothes now drying on the crate.

"Looking back on it now, I think we were just really lucky." He finished off his cigarette, extinguishing the flame.

"How'd you end up in Goodneighbor?" Natalie asked, looking at him over her shoulder.

"I hitched a ride with a caravan. I came looking for more caps, and ended up making a pretty decent name for myself. Until I heard the gunners were looking for help." His expression turned serious. "Those guys were animals, killed everything that moved if it got in their way. I stayed with it for a while, since the caps were good, but I guess it started to catch up with me. So I quit…" He leaned forward, and elbow propping on his knee, looking at Natalie as he spoke. "I needed a place where I could find work easy, and the people of Goodneighbor didn't ask too many questions, which suited my needs. So I made a deal with Hancock and waited for the caps to roll in."

"Why do you need caps so badly? I mean… I know it's money, but… Is it really that important?" She asked with a concerned tone.

"Right now, I need all the caps I can get. There's these two assho-ugh… two idiots from the gunners that keep harassing me about how I'm not supposed to be taking jobs anymore. They're scaring off my customers. I figured I could probably buy them off, so that's why I've been earning caps. I've still got a long way to go earning wise. And there's no guarantee they'd even stay away if I do get the caps. They'd probably take them and still put a bullet in my head." He huffed, frustrated. "I've got to keep trying, though… Right?"

"Maybe… but there's not another way?" Natalie asked.

"Doubt it… Unless I get to them first…" He swallowed hard.

"Kill them first?" Natalie asked with a worried expression.

"It's getting late," He quickly changed the subject, "Why don't you get some rest?" He stood up from the bed, gesturing for Natalie to lay down. "I'll wake you to keep watch later."

"Sure…" She climbed into the bed, curling into a ball. She quickly drifted off to sleep.

Nate and Nick were making the long walk back to Goodneighbor. Virgil informed them that Doctor Amari might be able to decode the courser chip, considering all the synths she's worked with. They somehow ended up at a small settlement where a man and his two sons lived, they were kind enough to let them stay in the old barn house for the night.

Nate zipped up the sleeping bag, groaning as he tried to relax a bit. He closed his eyes, thinking about Piper and Natalie, whether they were ok. If they were worried about him being gone for so long. He sighed, rolling onto his side.

Nick was awake, his yellow eyes staring blank ahead. Nate watched him for a moment, waiting for him to move. "Hey," Nate finally said, feeling awkward as the metal man was staring into space. "You're creeping me out, Nick." He said in a half-joking tone.

Nick's head turned quickly, his eyes unblinking. "Sorry, I was just… thinking."

"What about?" Nate asked, turning onto his back again.

"Every now and then I get these flashbacks about the old Nick's life. He was a damn good man., but sometimes I wonder why they used him instead of some math genius or bioengineer." Nick pulled out a cigarette, lighting it before taking a long drag of smoke.

"So do you remember anything about the Institute?" Nate asked.

"Every now and then I get glimpses. They keep you isolated. A single test chamber was my whole world for years. And someone was always watching," He took another drag of his cigarette, exhaling smoke as he spoke, "Then one day you wake up on the other side and that's it." His yellow eyes stared through a large crack in the wall.

Nate thought about it for a moment, how lonely it must be. Even if Nick was a synth, he still had emotions. He still cared, otherwise he wouldn't have stuck with Nate for so long. "So who are you, Nick? Not the Institute part, not the old world part. What's your story?"

Nick sighed, seeming to prepare himself for a long story. "I remember waking up in a garbage heap, my skin tattered and a head full of memories from a man who had been dead for over two hundred years. Since folks didn't really know much about synths back then, when I finally ran into some people they treated me with caution rather than hostility." He chuckled a bit. "But they kids, they weren't afraid. Jim, I think his name was, grilled me for about an hour before deciding I wasn't going to hurt anyone. He was the first person to speak to me after I got the boot from the Institute. Folks came out to see the mechanical man, it turned into a nice little soiree." A smile was planted on his face, clearly fond of the memory. "Local mechanic gave me a once over, free of charge. Those people treated me like a real human being. I guess I've just been trying to return the favor ever since." He paused a moment, turning to make eye contact with Nate. "It's a surprisingly rare trait out here sometimes. Something I've noticed you've got a fondness for. That's part of the reason I've stuck with you so far."

"I think it's also because you've got that trait, too." Nate said quietly. "You don't realize how good a man you are too, Valentine." Nick didn't respond, just stared into the darkness. Nate slowly drifted to sleep.


	14. Chapter 13: Storming

(This chapter has more Mac and Nat. Tons of angst with a bit of feels at the end. There's a lot going on here so sorry if the chapter seems kind of jumpy in setting. I didn't want to turn this chapter into a novel, so I tried my best to move things at a steady pace. Next chapter we will go back to Nate. Thanks for the favs and follows!)

Chapter 13: Storming

Natalie sat up quickly, looking around the room. Everything was dark and she could barely see anything in the dim moonlight. "Maccready?" She called out in a whisper, but he wasn't there. She heard some distant noises coming from outside.

She stood up slowly from the bed, hearing the mattress creak under her. She grabbed a knife from her bag, looking out the window. She saw a couple figures moving in the dark about ten yards from the building they were resting in. They were heading in her direction. "Shit …" She whispered as she gathered their things, shoving them in her bag. "Maccready, are you there?" She asked, peeking her head out the doorframe, looking below to see if he was outside.

She quickly stepped down the stairs, looking over her shoulder as she turned the corner to go behind the building. She ran into Maccready, making him gasp in fear "What the f-"

"Shhh, shh" She covered his mouth before he could continue speaking. "I saw some people heading this way… What are you doing out here?"

"I had to pee," He said as he zipped up his pants. "Did you get the stuff from upstairs?"

"Yea, all in the bag." She patted it in reassurance.

"Ok, follow me." He grabbed his rifle from it's leaning spot against the wall. They looked back behind the corner.

The people were heading straight towards the small settlement. They were wearing raider armor, but there were only four of them. And they were carrying… chains? "What do you think they're doing?" Natalie asked in a hushed tone.

"Slavers," Maccready answered with a bit of a snarl. "We're gonna have to run, make sure you don't get hit by the bullets. They're filled with tranquilizer." He pointed towards the old railroad tracks. "Follow the tracks, don't stop moving no matter what."

She nodded, looking over his face for a moment. He was obviously nervous. She swallowed hard, following him around the tattered fence to an opening they could fit through. "Just keep running." She said to herself.

The group of slaver's voices could be heard now as they laughed, significantly closer than before. When Maccready started to step through the fence, his sleeve got caught on one of the metal pieces sticking out. He shook himself free, the fence rattling loudly.

"What was that?" A male voice said.

"Hurry, could be people," A female voice responded. "You can't hide from us!" She shouted.

Natalie started running for the tracks, Maccready shortly behind her. When they came from around the opposite side of the building, a raider with his face painted red saw them. "They're running!" The man shouted, chasing after them. He raised a large weapon, but Natalie had never seen anything like it before.

"Shoot them!" The first man called to the red faced man. "Hurry, before they get away!"

"Run!" Maccready shouted to Natalie, turning around to aim his rifle at the man. He fired, the bullet hitting the red faced man straight between the eyes.

"Son of a bitch!" The first man called, seeing his friend killed almost instantaneously in front of him. He raised his own rifle, lining Maccready in his sights. "You're gonna fucking pay!" He roared to them, firing a shot.

Maccready took aim again, but as he was about to fire a syringe hit him. Natalie, who was now quite a distance away, heard him groan in pain from the impact. "Maccready!" She shouted to him, turning on one foot to go back.

"No, run!" Maccready ordered her, his arm dropping in numbness. The behemoth of a man began to walk over to Maccready, who was trying to aim as he held onto his gun with one hand.

"Get the girl!" A female wearing a gas mask shouted to the man.

The man aimed the rifle at Natalie, she dodged a syringe that shot out at her and kept running towards Maccready. "Maccready!" She called to him again. The man walked over to Maccready, who was wobbling as he tried to run away. "No!" She shouted, readying her knife to attack the man.

"Don't make this hard," The man said with a smug grin as he punched Maccready, causing him to fall on the ground.

When Natalie reached a yard's distance from the man, she lunged at him, jumping over Maccready. She grabbed onto the man's armor, causing him to lean forward from her weight. She jabbed the blade into his left eye, making him scream out in pain. His rifle fell to the ground.

"Gunter!" The female with the gas mask called out to him.

"My eye!" He threw Natalie off of him, knocking the wind out of her as she landed on her back on the hard metal railroad tracks. "My fucking eye, she fu-fucking stabbed me!" He covered his eye.

Natalie gasped for air, watching the woman approach them. She pulled her knife up again, ready to slash. There was a gunshot as the blade was thrown from her hand. The gasmask woman looked towards the building that Natalie and Maccready had been hiding in before. There was another man, wearing cage armor and a helmet. "About damn time, Shank." The gasmask lady said as she kicked Natalie in the ribs, the pain stinging as she lost all the air in her lungs. "We should just kill these assholes."

Gunter grabbed his rifle from the ground, aiming it at Natalie. "You know we can't do that, Lace." He said with a hint of regret in his voice.

"What're you… Gonna do…?" Natalie asked as she caught her breath again. Maccready was already out, the tranquilizer had made it into his system.

Lace removed her gasmask, revealing a heavily-scarred face. She gave an angry smirk to Natalie. "Oh, you'll find out soon enough." She hissed, spitting at her.

Natalie wiped the spit from her face, feeling a deep rage inside her. She bit her tongue, trying to resist the urge to attack the woman. There was no way she'd be able to fight, especially since she was outnumbered.

Shank, the man in the cage armor, trudged over to them, the chains in his hands. "Make sure we lock them up good." He said in raspy voice.

Lace snapped the chains onto Natalie's wrist and neck, making sure they were tight enough to keep her from slipping out. "Well, if we make a good payout on these two, I think we should invest in some explosive collars..." She pulled Natalie to her feet, her wrists going numb from the sudden pressure as she jerked the chain. "Not getting out of this one, little blue bird." She snarled.

Natalie bit her lip, wanting to say something back. She decided against it. Gunter, who had managed to wrap some old rags around the wound on his eye, walked over to Maccready, who was completely passed out. "What about this bastard?" He kicked at Maccready's feet.

"Well, they don't have much valuable stuff on them." Shank said as he cut Natalie's bag from her shoulders. He unzipped it, looking through the main pockets. "I don't think we could sell any of these… We should probably take him, too. If he can't be slaved off we can sell him to someone at the Combat Zone."

Lace shrugged at the answer. "Take him, then. Let's hope they were worth the trouble of losing Manta." She looked at her dead comrade, picking up his gun.

Gunter threw Maccready over his shoulder, grabbing his rifle and tossing it to Shank, who appeared to be looking it over. Shank threw down his own rifle, putting Maccready's in the weapon holster on his back. "Let's head out." He ordered them. Lace pulled harshly at Natalie, causing her to wince at the pain. She looked at her backpack they discarded, hoping somehow Piper would be able to find them.

Natalie was staring blankly ahead as Lace continued to lead her. Maccready, still slung over Gunter's shoulder, was beginning to wake up. "Put me down, asshole…" He mumbled in a haze.

"Gladly," Gunter dropped his body roughly. Maccready rolled over, trying to crawl away. "Not so fast, little guy." He grabbed onto Maccready's shirt, pulling him to his feet. "You're not going anywhere."

Lace shackled Maccready's hands and neck with chains that connected to Natalie's. He struggled for a bit, before Shank aimed his gun at them. "Don't try anything. Or you'll both be dead." He warned in his raspy voice.

Maccready looked over the rifle. "That's my- my gun you bastard!" He snarled. "Give me back my gun!"

Gunter punched Maccready in the face, "Shut up, you little bitch!" Natalie tried to reach for Gunter's arm, causing him to push her back. She choked momentarily as the chain pulled against her neck.

Maccready spat at him with bloody saliva, his lip busted. "Make me!"

"Stop it, now. Or we'll kill you both." Shank warned as he aimed at Natalie this time.

Natalie swallowed hard, looking at Maccready. His face a cross between nervousness and shock. "Please, stop." She asked him, her eyes glancing at the ground as her eyes welled with tears. She hated seeing him like this. It was all her fault, for wanting to go outside the town.

"That's what I thought." Lace said with a smirk. "Now keep moving, we've got places to be." She jerked on the chain, causing Maccready and Natalie to stumble forward.

He grumbled under his breath, before turning over his shoulder to see Natalie. "We're gonna be fine." He reassured her.

"I know," She mumbled quietly, staring with a determined expression into his blue eyes. She was scared, her eyes watering as she stared at the ground. "I'm sorry…" She said hoarsely, "This is my fault…"

They had been walking for what felt like an eternity before they reached before they reached the old Corvega assembly plant. It was impressive how much they had it fortified, with turrets and guards around the entire perimeter. They walked through the different levels, raiders on all the floors. Every now and then they would get dirty stares, someone commenting about 'New Meat.'

They walked across a platform, heading to the main office above the assembly floor. Jared, a man with white lines painted across his face was waiting there, sitting at the desk. "What do you jackasses want?" He asked, leaning back in the rolling chair.

"We brought you some more people, you can run your experiments on them." Shank said, shoving Maccready forward.

"Experiment? What kind…?" Natalie asked in horror.

Jared simply let out a laugh. "Would you look at that, a vault suit? Which one are you from, bird?" He asked as he took a drag from a cigarette.

Natalie didn't answer, glaring at him. Lace grabbed Natalie's hair, pulling up harshly so she could read the numbers. "Says one eleven." She answered. "Never heard of that one."

"I've got some guys that travel north of there, they've never seen it even open up." He stood up, stepping to Natalie. "People from there are probably clean, not exposed to the wastes out here." He exhaled smoke into Natalie's eyes, causing her to cough. "And the little guy?" He asked, looking over Maccready.

"None of your business…" Maccready answered with a glare.

"Well, well… Fighter…" Jared extinguished his flame. "How much are you wanting for these? Last ones you brought me didn't even last through the first cycle of chems."

"Four hundred caps each." Shank demanded, stepping forward.

Jared chuckled lightly. "Two hundred…"

"Four hundred, or we leave with them." He tilted his head to Lace, who then pulled back onto the chain, having Natalie and Maccready step back.

"How 'bout four hundred for the dweller and one hundred for the other?"

The group pondered over it a bit, talking in the corner. "Fine," Shank finally said. "But you're letting us set up shop here. We can come and grab what we need when we need it."

"No, that's bullshit—" Jared started.

"Do you want the vault dweller?" Lace asked as she pulled on Natalie's chain, causing her to grown against the pain of being choked.

Jared looked deep in thought before answering. "Fine."

Jared's men grabbed onto the chains, dragging Natalie and Maccready out of the office. "Give her the first set of drugs. I want to see how she reacts to them." Jared shouted to them and let out a throaty laugh.

The guards shoved them in the direction they needed them to go. They reached a small room with only one door, there was a table and some filing cabinets. Other than that, the room was empty. They undid the chains on Natalie, one of the guards pulling Maccready away from her. He struggled against the guard. "Leave her alone!" He growled through clenched teeth.

Natalie tried to push the man off her, but he was far too big. "Please, no!" She screamed, her throat aching in pain as she struggled against the chain.

"Fuck, she's moving too much!" The man said as he tried to hold her.

"Just choke her 'till she passes out, she'll survive if you don't do it to hard." The other man grunted as he struggled with Maccready. He pulled out his pistol, pressing the metal to Maccready's forehead. "Stop, now." He said sternly.

Maccready froze, slowing his movements as he watched Natalie pass out from the restriction on her.

She looked at him, eyes bloodshot and watering as she tried to breath. Her lips moved, no words coming out. Maccready looked away, his own eyes watering as he fell back against the wall. She felt everything going dark, the vision fading in and out from the corners of her eyes. Before she knew it, she was gone.

When she woke up her body felt like it was on fire, like literal fire coursing through her veins. She stared at the ceiling, trying to focus through blurred vision. Her eyes couldn't make sense of anything. Her head was hurting, it felt as if someone had slammed her into the ground.

She heard her name, distantly. She couldn't make out whose voice it was. She tried to turn her head, her neck felt strained. Somebody was moving towards her. Natalie felt herself panicking as she tried to crawl away. She started to scream, struggling against the person as they pulled her into a sitting position. "No, no!" She begged, beginning to sob. "I don't want to go." She tried to shout out, but she had a feeling she wasn't really forming the words right in her haze. Her mouth found a spot of flesh and she dug her teeth in at an attempt to get the figure off her. She felt something warm seep into her mouth, metallic and bitter. A hand pushed her head off, releasing her from the flesh.

The person she struggled with wrapped something around her, something she couldn't move against. She tried to wiggle out of the grip, feeling heavy and weak. It took her a few minutes to relax as everything began to slow down. Her vision was still glossy, but she could see better. Her mind was able to make sense of some of her surroundings. She realized it was Maccready gripping her tightly, holding her in place so she couldn't move. When he noticed she was relaxing he loosened his grip.

"Are you all right?" He asked, sweating from struggling with her. He had scratches over her his forearms from where her fingernails had gotten him. "You were throwing your head onto the ground. I didn't want you to hurt yourself." He explained as he sat back, clearly tired from the struggle.

She looked at the blood going down his arm, running her fingers against it. She felt the need to taste it. An inexplicable urge. She tried to fight it for a moment, her head wouldn't let her focus, though. She opened her mouth, trying to speak. Instead she found her fingers at her mouth, tasting the liquid. She smeared it across her lips.

"Stop, Natalie." Maccready grabbed at her arm, forcing her hand away from her mouth. "Geez, what the heck did they give you…? Some kind of vampire drug?" He asked as he wiped away some of the blood from himself.

She looked over him, her eyes half-lidded and glazed over. She saw the bite mark she left on his neck, where she had managed to draw some blood, down the center of his neck. As if she were trying to rip his throat out with her teeth. She reached a finger out, trying to poke at the red and purple spot.

Maccready smacked her hand away, shifting from her. "Stop." He said sternly as he stared at her eyes. "Listen to me. Stop."

"Stop." She repeated him. "Stop. Stop. Stop." She breathed in and out heavily, trying to focus. She let herself lay back onto the ground. She ran her fingers over her own forehead, feeling the sweat. "Hot." She mumbled as she began to pull at the arms of her vault suit, scratching herself as she did. She couldn't control herself. She didn't know what she was doing. She bit into her lip as she struggled against the material

Maccready grabbed her hands, trying to stop her. "No, don't do that." He spoke softly.

She relaxed a bit, watching over Maccready's face. She saw his bruise, where Gunter had hit him. She looked over his lip, where it had busted as well. She stared at the way the crust formed, mesmerized by the scabbing blood.

Suddenly the door opened, Maccready released Natalie, standing up. Jared walked in, stepping slowly towards the two. "Having a personal moment?" He asked with a grin, noticing the position Maccready and Natalie had been in. "Better take the opportunity while you can, never know if you'll get to see tomorrow."

"Fuck you," Maccready snarled at him.

"You keep talking like that and I'm going to take your tongue out." Jared warned as he pulled a blade from his pocket. Maccready turned away, fists clenched in anger. Jared walked over to Natalie patting her cheek. She stared up at him, a look of contempt. "Don't be that way," He chuckled. He ran his blade over her chin. "Tell me, what do you see?" He asked as he slid the blade carefully down her throat.

"See." She repeated. Her face still twisted in anger, but she couldn't put words to her emotions. "See!" She screamed at him, practically spitting the words out.

Jared rolled his eyes. "Great, you guys gave her too high of a dose. Shame…" He said to one of the guards. "We'll have to do a new dose on her, once it's out of her system." He pointed his blade at Maccready, a serious expression on his face. "You better not talk like that again to me or else…"

"Or else…" Natalie mumbled, grabbing at her hair and tugging at it.

Jared chuckled, stepping out the room.

Maccready stared at Natalie, reaching down and gently shaking her shoulders. "Come on, we've got to think of a plan." Maccready pleaded. "We can't die here…"

Natalie stared at him again, looking over his lips again. She ran her fingers over them, her thumb pushing into the scab. He flinched under her touch, most likely from the pain. She trailed her hand down further, running through his bead as she traced the bite on his neck. "Hurts…" She muttered, her eyes feeling heavy. She started to drift into a sleep, her head feeling numb. She didn't want to die here either…

A couple hours later she woke up again, feeling almost completely back to normal. Maccready was asleep next to her, his back away from her. She sat up, her head throbbing a bit as she did. "Maccready," She whispered.

He stirred, rolling over as he rubbed his eyes. "Hey," He yawned. "You feeling better?" He asked.

She couldn't remember everything, bits and pieces of what had happened when she first woke up. "Yea…" She said, nodding her head slowly. She looked at his scratched arms and the bite on his neck. "What happened to you?" She asked as she stared at him in horror.

"You," He said almost accusingly. "You don't remember?"

"God, no… I—" She reached her hand out to the marking on his neck. "Jesus…" She sighed with watering eyes. "What the fuck did they do to me?" She asked as the tears ran slowly down her cheeks.

"Hey, it wasn't so bad," Maccready chuckled, waving it off. "I've had worse."

She laughed a bit, her throat aching as she did. "I'm sorry…" She felt her eyes welling up.

Maccready stared at her for a moment, his face in a concerned expression. "Why didn't you just leave me? Anyone else would have, heck even I would have. You could've saved yourself…"

Natalie looked at him, a bit dumbfounded by his question. "I care about you…" She said quietly. "I know we've only just met, but I think you're a good person."

"God, you have no idea…" He trailed off. "I'm not who you think I am. Not one bit. Running with the gunners, I killed so many innocent people. I'm not like Nick Valentine... hell, even Hancock has a better moral compass than I do."

Natalie stared at him quietly, her eyes locked onto his. "Do you have someone you care about? Someone that helped sway your decision to leave the gunners?"

Maccready swallowed hard, eyes unblinking. "Yea… I do…"

"The fact that you care about that person enough to give up something that benefitted you, that's enough to show me you're a good person." Natalie reached out a comforting hand, slowly running her thumb against the back of his hand. "Nobody's perfect, so don't beat yourself up over your past. You're not the same person you were before…"

"Yea…" He sighed, looking at her hand covering his. "I hope so…" Her eyes followed his, and she looked at it. Seeing how different they were. Her fingers were thin and delicate, the skin over them unscarred and smooth, aside from a couple scratches. His hands were rough, scarred from things she would probably never know about.

She couldn't help but feel a bit happy at the connection. It had been so long since she felt the warmth of someone else's hand in hers. Despite being frozen for those two hundred years, she felt like emotionally and physically her body suffered from the lack of touch.

She thought of Jeff, the way he would hold her hand in the same way she held Maccready's now. Comforting, strong. Even though she probably didn't feel as strong to Maccready as Jeff had felt to her. She found herself resting her head on his shoulder, too relaxed into the moment.

She didn't sit up, but removed her hand from his. "Sorry, I was just thinking…" She whispered hoarsely.

"What is it?" He asked. He felt stiff next to her, nervous.

She leaned up, looking into his eyes. For a moment she saw Jeff's eyes staring back at her, a familiar rush running through her as she stared. "Nothing…" She said quietly.

Maccready stared at her a moment, and she didn't know if it was from the stress of the day or the fact that they didn't know if they were going to make it out of the situation they were in alive, but something edged him closer to her face. Something caused him to push her hair behind her ear and pull her in close as he held his hand on her cheek.

And something let her be drawn in as he did so. She felt something welling in her chest, fear, nervousness, happiness, sadness. A flurry of emotions as they drew in closer. She let her eyes flutter closed, feeling him stop an inch away from her. He breathed out heavily. She wondered what stopped him. Was he regretting this? Did he think they were moving too fast?

She took the chance, pushing herself in closer. Her heart racing in her ears and chest as she felt their lips meet. He hesitated moving in, but then she reached for his hand on her face, letting it run over his and he pushed deeper. She licked over her lips, accidentally tracing his as she tried to make the dryness go away. He shuddered a bit, leaning back some.

She pushed forward again one last time, placing a final kiss before stopping completely. Breathing softly as they broke apart, Maccready held her face for a moment, then gently pushed her hair behind her ear again before letting his hand leave her.

She smiled, unable to make eye contact with him at first. He cleared his throat, his voice cracking as he spoke, "Sorry…"

"Don't be…" she said, finally looking over his face. He gave her a soft smile, and she knew their contact had helped him in some way. She knew it had helped her. She sighed in relief. They both sat silently, waiting for someone to return, thinking on their pasts.


	15. Chapter 14: Grit

Chapter 13: Grit

Nate and Nick walked through the gate to Goodneighbor, feeling a bit relieved to finally make it back. They walked over to the Hotel Rexford, leaving their power armor outside. He walked up the stairs, his feet feeling heavy from all the walking he had been doing.

"Want me to take the chip to doctor Amari?" Nick suggested. "You can rest up a bit, get Natalie ready to leave."

"Thanks, Nick." Nate said as he handed the courser chip to him. Nate continued up the stairs, finally reaching the room. He knocked on the door softly. "Piper, Nat… Open up, I'm back."

Piper jerked the door open frantically. "Nate, oh my god. Thank god you're back- listen we've got to find Natalie!" Her eyes were red from crying, and beginning to tear up again. "I know I messed up, but I thought she'd be back-"

"Where did she go?" Nate asked with a shocked expression. "How long has she been gone?"

"With Maccready, she said she wanted to get some practice in, so she could fight. I know they left the city, but I have no clue where they could have gone!" She sat on the bed, trying to rack her brain. "It's been two days, Nate. I tried to find her outside the city but I don't know where-"

"Piper, why would you let her leave?" Nate asked, running his hand through his hair. "Is there anyone- anyone at all- who might know where she went?"

Piper wiped her eyes, sniffing. She looked frustrated in deep thought, trying to find an answer. Finally, she snapped her fingers, "Maybe Daisy, Maccready's always talking to her. We should ask her!" She practically bolted out the door. Nate followed quickly behind her.

They ran over to Daisy's shop. She was smiling as she greeted them. "What can I do for you?" She asked as she leaned against the counter.

"Do you have any idea where Natalie and Maccready could have gone?" Piper asked hurriedly. "They left town the other day and haven't come back…"

"Oh, right. He told me about their free lesson…" Daisy looked thoughtful. "Well, knowing Maccready it's somewhere far outside the cities here. Too dangerous with all the raiders and mutants around."

"Are there any open areas around here? Without all the danger?" Nate asked.

"Well, there's an open area past the Chestnut Hillock Reservoir." She said as she continued to think. "He might have gone to that area. You could always ask the people at Oberland, if you can't seem to find them in that area."

"Thank you so much, Daisy." Nate said as they began walking towards the gate. He stopped when he saw Nick walking out the Memory Den. "Let's go get Nick, he can help us out."

Nick turned to meet them as they were running up to him, the course chip in hand, "Amari wasn't able to decode the chip, but she said she knows people who might be able to..."

"We'll have to worry about that later, Natalie's gone missing." Nate said as they started walking to the gate. "We're gonna look for her near the reserve."

"How'd that happen?" Nick asked, looking over Piper suspiciously.

"It's a long story, Nick. I'll take my lecture for it later. We need to hurry to find them." She started heading towards the gate.

Nick chuckled a bit. "Should've known with Piper…" He trailed off on his thought as Piper shot him a glare.

They walked through the heavily wooded areas, searching everywhere, but with no luck. When they finally reached the settlement they were all disappointed to see nobody was there as well. Nate ran into the building, heading upstairs since the ground level was blocked off. He didn't see any signs of people. "If they were here, they're already gone…"

"Look, guys!" Piper shouted from the side of the building near the railroad tracks. "Look, Natalie's backpack." She ran and grabbed it. "Looks like it was cut, but why would they leave all their personal belongings…"

Nick grabbed something from the ground. "Good news, they're both probably alive…" He ran his hand over his chin, holding a small syringe in his metallic hand as he inspected it. "These weren't raiders, these were slavers."

"Slavers…?" Nate asked. "Well, where can we find them? We've got to get to them, Nick."

"I don't know, Nate." Nick replied, still looking over the syringe. "It's a possibility they followed the tracks, but there's also the chance they're in the financial district…"

Nate looked over a dead body that was left over the tracks, noticing it for the first time. "Maybe we can find something on this guy?" He leaned over the body, flipping it onto it's backside.

"That's definitely Maccready's handiwork." Piper noted the bullet hole in between the eyes. She helped Nate, checking pockets on the pants. "A note…" She said as she looked over it, unfolding the small paper. Nate continued searching as she read. "Well, it says they were delivering to a guy named Jared…"

"That's not good," Nick said as he looked at Piper with worried eyes.

"Why? What does that mean?" Nate asked as he grabbed ammo from the body's pockets.

"Well, I was studying a few case files about Jared… He likes to use psychoactive drugs on his victims. A couple of gals from Diamond City had gone missing before, but when they came back… They were barely recognizable… And that was within a week…" Nick gritted his teeth together. "We've got to find them, fast…"

Nate nodded, unable to fathom what Nick had just said. A week… God, how much damage could they do in a couple of days…? "So where can we find them?"

"Sorry, kid. I have no clue…" Nick gave a sorrowful expression as he answered. "Girls couldn't remember anything from their time in Jared's test chambers. And they were returned to Diamond City, but we don't know how they even got there…"

"Hancock," Piper said almost enthusiastically. "Hancock might have some info on them! He usually knows where all the bad guys hang out." She was already making her way back to Goodneighbor.

Hancock was leaning back in his chair, chewing over some mentats as they walked in. Fahrenheit opened the door to let them in, clearing her throat to garner his attention. He turned towards them, his eyes wide from the magical pills that were in his system. "Oh, didn't hear ya come in." He chuckled softly. "What can I do for you lovely people?" He asked with a charismatic grin.

"We've got a problem…" Piper said with crossed arms.

Hancock's smile quickly faded. "With what…?"

"Natalie, the girl I travelled with… She's gone missing." Nate waved to Piper, who pulled the note from her pocket and threw it on Hancock's desk. "We think slavers may have grabbed her… They might be taking her to a guy named Jared, know anything."

Hancock's hand was on his chin, staring over the scribbled letter for a moment. "That fuckin' asshole." He slammed his fist on the table. "Fahrenheit, grab my shotgun, we've got business to take care of."

"Sir." She stepped out the room, heading downstairs.

Nate looked at Nick, his jaw slightly dropped in confusion. "Is there something going on?" He asked, thinking maybe Hancock might be on a different track than them.

"Yea, there's something going on. That bastard was told no operators step foot on this side of the bridge, or else. Now he kidnaps one of our citizens, thinkin' everything is gonna be ok. Probably thinks I'll just shrug it off…" He was practically growling as he intertwined his fingers, leaning forward on the desk. "Well, that fucker's got another thing coming…" He gave a devilish grin.

"It's really not _necessary_ for you to come…" Piper said nervously.

"Like hell, this guy is practically raging war on me. I've already had Fahrenheit take down a couple of his slavers about a week ago. Them coming back for more? Oh yea, that's definitely war…" Fahrenheit returned with his double barrel shotgun and a bag of ammo. "Keep an eye on things while I'm gone, Fahr."

"Oh brother," Nick sighed. "This isn't going to be good…"

Nate didn't want to stop and rest for the night, but he knew everybody else wasn't going to be able to keep going. He was barely able to go on himself, but wouldn't dare admit it. They saw a building from a distance that looked well-fortified, plenty of lights and sounded like even turrets. They could only hope it was settlers and not a raider camp, so Nate thought it'd be a good idea to find out. They somehow managed to sneak around the backside of the building. When they walked towards the front of the building they noticed the place was swarmed with feral ghouls.

"Looks like brotherhood," Hancock muttered. "Let's leave them to the ferals." He said half-joking.

Nick glared at him. "I don't care what kind of people they are, we should help them if they need it."

"I'm leaving this one up to Nate." Piper said as they hung back, listening to the struggle.

Nate bit his tongue a bit as he thought. He had no idea who the 'brotherhood' was, but if they helped them out maybe they could offer some cover for the night. "We'll help them." He decided. Hancock shrugged, rolling his eyes a bit.

Nate aimed his rifle, firing a shot into a nearby feral. The disfigured monster ran towards him, arms flailing. He fired a couple more rounds, causing the body to collapse to the ground.

"Is that all you've got?" Hancock bellowed as he took down two ferals back to back.

"Watch out, Nick." Piper warned as she opened fire on a feral running towards him as he struggled with one that was trying to grab at him.

"Thanks Piper!" He shouted back, finishing the struggle with two shots in the feral's head.

They walked into the gated off area in front of the building, quickly sweeping over the remaining feral ghouls that had managed to creep in. People in power armor trudged around, laser weapons in yield. As the battle finished out, a man with a scar across his eye approached them. "Thanks for the help, civilian. Although, it was completely _unnecessary._ " He glared at the group, looking long over Nick and Hancock.

"You're welcome," Nate scoffed. "If we didn't show up you guys would've been toast."

"We would've managed." His glare intensified. "State your business."

"We just saved your asses…" Piper pointed to him, holstering her weapon.

"Answer the question." He said again with a harsher tone, pulling his laser rifle closer.

"Look, buddy calm down. We're just trying to find a place to rest." Hancock groaned. "We're on our way to pick up a couple friends from some assholes that kidnapped them."

A lady was exiting the building, heading towards the man standing before them. "Paladin Danse, sir." She gave him a salute, in which he returned one. "I have to inform you of some terrible news…"

The paladin looked over the group for a moment before turning back towards the young lady. "Continue, Haylen."

"We have lost quite a few men, and although I know we do not allow _certain_ types of initiates, I suppose you wouldn't make an exception for maybe just… _one_ extra hand?" She asked almost nervously.

"I don't think that would be very… appropriate…" He said through clenched teeth.

"Well, sir, we may have to return to the Prydwen and regroup. We can always restart the assignment with a new team." She responded softly.

Danse bit into his cheek, probably regretting having Haylen speak in front of them. Now they knew that his group needed help. "Affirmative. You may return to your quarters…"

Nate had a smirk plastered across his face, knowing Danse turning them away now would be suicide, or worse… giving up. "As you were saying…?"

"We will let you stay, one night. In exchange for _your-"_ He pointed to Nate "- aide in something important."

"Fine, but only after I return with our friends… Then I'll help you." He reached a hand out to shake on the agreement.

"Also, the ghoul and synth must hand over all weapons in possession for the night." He ordered as he straightened up.

Nate pondered it for a moment, but shrugged. At least him and Piper would have weapons to protect them, in case the discrimination turned more… _deadly_. Nate reached his hand out further, insisting on the shake.

Danse's stern expression stayed across his face as he met Nate's hand. "Don't make me regret this." As he released his hand he also added, more threateningly, "And don't think that just because we need the help I won't hesitate to put a bullet between your eyes."

"Understood. We'll be on our best behavior." He gave a salute to the Paladin, who rolled his eyes as Hancock gave a groan of disapproval at the promise of good behavior.

Nate was staring at the ceiling, laying on the sleeping bag. He couldn't sleep, he was too worried about what could be happening to Natalie. Nick let out a small cybernetic cough, most likely to get his attention. "You're going to be tired tomorrow… It'll be hard for you to fight." Nick said in his parenting tone.

"Well, tell that to my brain. I can't relax while thinking about everything going on…" Nate rolled onto his side, facing Nick. "So, why does the brotherhood dislike synths and ghouls…?" He tried to bringing his mind to another subject, thinking maybe it'd relax him more.

"Oh, really it's anything that isn't human." Nick stared around the room. "They see us as abominations, created by some people playing god. Although I agree that nobody should have enough power to make human-like creatures I don't think they're correct in saying we all deserve the death penalty."

"So I'm guessing the rest is just because they're 'monsters and boogeymen?'" Nate gave a small chuckle at the thought that grown men in power armor would feel so strongly about those different from them. Hell, it's not like they couldn't protect themselves. Suddenly, Nate's mind flashed to Natalie again and he rolled to the opposite side, swallowing hard as he squeezed his eyes shut. What if they were torturing her? What if she was on the brink of death? The thought made him want to run out of bed and to her rescue, a feeling of guilt swimming in his stomach. He heard Nick say something to him, but didn't know what it was. His mind played images of her over and over in his head, thinking about how much pain she could be in.

"Hey," He heard Piper whisper from the sleeping bag next to him. His eyes snapped open. It was still dim inside the room. Had he dozed off? "Sorry if I woke you up… I was just thinking about everything, and I want you to know I'm really sorry."

"It's fine…" Nate said as he looked over her face. There was something soft in her features. Usually she looked strong, determined. Now she looked vulnerable, weak, and tired… "It was bound to happen at some point… I just wish she could've returned safely…"

She reached a comforting hand out to Nate, he flinched a bit at the touch of her warm hand, not expecting it to feel so soft. "She's going to be ok… She's a lot stronger than we let her show…"

"I know, it's just hard not to be…" He swallowed, not wanting to say _scared._ "…Worried…"

"I know what you mean… When I realized she was missing… When she didn't come back… I started thinking about Nat, my sister…" She looked down at her hand, her eyes beginning to well up. "I'm not the greatest influence, you know. I'm just scared that one day, she'll end up like me…"

"And what's so bad about that?" Nate asked without hesitation, a smirk on his lips. She blushed a bit at his comment.

"Well, we don't exactly lead the safest lives out here," She gave a small chuckle, wiping away the tears. "I just want her to go back to being the sweet, innocent Nat, paper girl and all around upstanding citizen. I can't have her dodging bullets and running from all the people she pisses off." She was leaning up on an elbow now, tracing a finger on the ground with the hand that had been over Nate's, her tears completely gone. "I mean, that's part of the reason I'm always on the road. I think if I spend enough time away from her maybe she'll cool off… I just… I don't know what to do…" She watched her finger trace along the dirt.

Nate bit his lip in thought. It's not like you can really change people from who they are. Hell, there was no way he could force Natalie into being a safer person. He knew she had an adventurous side that would never go away, and maybe Piper's sister was the same. He placed his hand over Piper's, watching her eyes as he spoke. "The best thing you can do is love her… Family's precious…" His mind trailed off to Nora and Shaun, thinking of how much he missed them. "The last thing you want to do is push them away, because… You might lose them forever…"

Piper sighed heavily, resting her head in the palm of her hand. "You're right… I wouldn't want that to happen. Thanks, Nate…" She gave him a soft smile. He felt a strange heat rising up in his chest as she met his eyes again.

Although they hadn't spent much time together, he knew there was something between them. But he didn't have time to focus on anything besides Shaun and now, Natalie… Maybe one day things would be calm enough, once he had Shaun safe and sound. Once Natalie was safe from those slavers. Once he stopped thinking about Nora every spare moment… One day…

"Will you two stop? I'm trying to get some sleep." Hancock groaned. Piper turned over her shoulder, blushing at the fact that the ghoul had intruded on their very private conversation.

"Hancock! Were you listening the whole time?" Piper gasped.

"It's kind of hard not to when you're sleeping right next to it." He grumbled.

"Ok, guys, knock it off." Nate laughed, enjoying the lightheartedness of the moment. "We've got a big day tomorrow, and we're gonna need all our strength to smash in those bastards heads…" He rolled back over, Nick was rolling his eyes, a smile on his lips as he leaned back against the wall. Nate let himself drift off to sleep, for once able to rest easy. _Natalie is going to be ok..._ He told himself.


	16. Chapter 15: Dirt and Blood

(Slight NSFW near the end of the chapter, I don't delve too much into sexual content, more like... over-viewing it?)

Chapter 15: Dirt and Blood

"Tell me, what do you see?" Jared asked her as she stared up at the ceiling lights. They were blurry in her vision as she tried to focus. He was gripping her hair hard, giving her a headache. It had been four days now since they had been locked up. Part of her was already giving up hope that Piper would find them. And Nate? Nate had probably assumed she just ran off to be on her own, considering how difficult she was being with him the last time they saw each other.

"What do I see?" She asked as her eyes flicked down to the man who was forcing her neck upright. She wanted to rip his eyes out, the way they looked over her as if all his answers were somehow locked away in her. Like she was a magic box and the drugs were keys to the lock. He just kept trying new ones on her, hoping one would fit the lock. She started laughing, the sound dry in her throat. "You're insane…"

Jared's hand slapped her hard across the cheek, forcing her head to turn from the sudden strike. The pain was numbing, but part of her was starting to get used to it. A slap was nothing compared to the drugs. Maccready shifted as he watched them from the corner of the room, trying his best not to say anything. "I'm not fuckin' insane…" Jared released her hair, letting her head fall forward. She didn't have the strength to look back up at him as he spoke. "I'm on the verge of something amazing, something great. I'd have my own little slave to tell me what turns to make. To lead me down a path of power…" He was making a show of his speech in front of the other men. "I'm a fucking _genius_." Maccready stared at the floor, clenching his jaw as he tried his best not to say something to the man.

Natalie began to laugh again, her voice cracking a bit as she did. "Well, I hate to disappoint… but I can't see anything… and I never will…" She tilted her head just enough to meet his eyes through her tangled matted hair. "Because you are _nothing_ … and you can't see a future where it doesn't exist." She practically spat the words at him.

Jared pulled a blade from his back pocket, he grabbed Natalie by the hair again and forced her to her feet. He brought the blade to her neck, pushing uncomfortably into the skin. "You think I'm nothing? How about I show you what being nothing feels like, _bitch_." He gave her a twisted grin.

"Hey, leave her alone!" Maccready spoke up as he tried to step to his feet, almost falling over. He struggled against his wrist restraints. They had cuffed him after he tried to escape the day before by managing to throw one of the smaller guards on the ground, grabbing their weapon. Natalie, at the time, wasn't alert enough to try to fight back as the men rushed into the room, holding Maccready down as they each took turns at hitting him.

Jared tilted his knife towards Maccready, "You shut your mouth you scrawny rat. Can't wait for the raiders from the combat zone to take you out of here…" He turned his head towards Natalie, the blade still facing Maccready. "I think these two need to be taught a lesson about humility. These two need to be brought _down to nothing_ … The need to be reminded how _weak_ they are…" The men standing around the room hollered in agreement, giving shouts of praise to their leader. Jared stepped away from Natalie, placing his knife back into the sheath. "But first, I want them to sober up." Jared gave a feigned friendly pat on the back to Natalie while the other guards groaned in disapproval. "I want you to be completely aware as I break you down." He gave her another twisted smile.

Natalie glared at him, clenching her jaw tight as he began to walk out the room.

"Come on, clear out. They need the rest while they can get it. They're going to be giving quite a performance tonight." Jared laughed maniacally as everyone left the room. The door locked behind the last person.

Maccready stared at the door, looking deep in thought. Natalie could tell he was starting to break, too. Whether it be from the drugs or all the torture… Or even simply not knowing if they'd ever get a chance to escape this mad house. "You gonna be ok?" Maccready asked as he shuffled over to her.

"Yea, fine." She said quietly, her throat was sore from all the screaming she had been doing the day before. One of the drugs they gave her sent her into a wild rage and she was screaming her lungs out as she tried to fight all the guards around her. Psycho is what Maccready called it. A very fitting name. "What about you?" She asked after a moment, weakly walking to meet him. "You're looking pretty beat up." She gave him a small smile.

"Yea, don't look too bad yourself." He chuckled. Admittedly she did look really terrible. Days of physical and mental torture do that to a person, though. She helped him lean against the wall to sit down. His stomach was growling. "Sorry… You'd think they'd want to keep their guinea pigs well fed in here." He shouted the words to the door, as if someone were on the other side listening in.

"It's fine. I don't really care for all the roach meat, so you can have my serving next time." She laughed softly. She liked that they were still able to joke despite the situation. It made her feel a bit at ease. Within the past couple of days they had grown really close, although this was probably because they were forced into sharing the torture chamber together. "Hey, hope you don't mind me asking… But the person you care about. Who is it?"

He flinched a bit at the question, as if he wasn't sure to answer. "I'll tell you mine if you say yours first." He waged.

Natalie bit her lip as she thought about it for a moment. "Fine, but you can't say my answer isn't a real one."

"Ok…?" Maccready said with a small chuckle.

"I don't really have anyone… I mean, I could say Nate, but honestly… he isn't what keeps me going. Definitely not the one to sway my decisions…" She rolled her eyes a bit. "Otherwise we wouldn't be in this situation… Honestly, part of me just wishes things ended for me in that vault."

"Oh, come on. Then we wouldn't be on this great adventure." Maccready said sarcastically.

"Exactly." She spoke with a serious tone. "It's like everything I do, I fuck it up. I fucked up before the bombs fell. I've fucked up everything now…" She sighed heavily.

"How'd you fu- err, mess up before the war?" Maccready asked.

"My fiancé, when we met. I was just looking for a cute guy to lose my virginity to." She felt herself blushing in embarrassment. "Stupid, I know… But it turned into something really great…" She smiled as she ran her fingers over the palm of her hand. "Anyways, my dad… He was really strict, he wanted me to marry someone he considered successful. I didn't even tell him when I started dating Jeff, and when he proposed… I definitely didn't want to tell him about that. I was too ashamed to tell my dad about everything. I thought he wouldn't think Jeff was acceptable… and I didn't want to lose him…" She felt her eyes watering up, she pushed her hair behind her ear as she spoke. "And then the bombs were going to fall. Jeff wanted to announce our engagement to my parents, so he was at our house. Turns out my dad thought he was a really nice guy." She sighed again, frustrated. "Which I don't know if he was just trying to comfort me, or if he really meant it. But what if he really meant it and I spent my whole life scared to be honest with them…" She stopped herself, realizing she was rambling.

Maccready was watching her face silently, a somewhat pained expression on him. "I didn't even get to tell my mom about him…" She felt tears welling up in her eyes, but she quickly turned her head away, wiping them against her arm. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to just throw this on you…" She sniffed.

Maccready was quiet for a moment as she gathered her composure. "I have a son…" He said softly. Natalie listened quietly, watching him intently as he spoke. "His name is Duncan… And I had a wife named Lucy. She passed away a while back, when some feral ghouls got to her." He swallowed hard. "Duncan, he's back in the capital wasteland. He's really sick right now and I couldn't dare ask him to come along. I was out here looking for a cure…" He ran his thumb over his eyes, wiping away any tears that dared to escape.

Natalie swallowed hard, trying to hold back her own tears as she watched him. He looked like he wanted to say more, but just bit his lip. She leaned against his shoulder. "I'm gonna get you out of here…" Her voice was a bit shaky, but she spoke confidently. "I'm gonna get you out of here so you can help your son. You're going to see him again." She looked him in the eye as he slowly nodded to her. "I promise."

Within a few hours, the door swung open. Jared's men chained Natalie by the wrist and neck. "Don't get any ideas." One of the men said with a glare. "Neither of you." He added as he stared intensely at Maccready.

They walked down the hall, heading down stairs. They eventually reached the plant floor, old corvegas left scattered around. Natalie looked confused for a moment, noticing people standing on the platforms above. Jared, however, was standing between two rusted corvegas. She turned to give a look to Maccready, who appeared equally confused. Everyone began cheering as they noticed the two walking in.

Jared raised his arms, reaching towards them in an introduction as he gave a wretched laugh. The crowd's cheers became more intense. The men leading Natalie and Maccready began to undo the restraints as they moved near. "Don't try anything." The man warned again as he let Maccready out of his restraints, patting his holstered gun as if to give warning.

Maccready grumbled something under his breath, but didn't move. As the crowd's screams and cheers died down, Jared took a step towards them. "These assholes think they're really something. They think they're tough shit!" He bellowed out the words, announcing to the crowd of raiders. "Well, I'm going to show them what _we_ think of them." He stepped towards Maccready, grabbing a baseball bat from the hood of his car. "I'll be nice, and let you pick who goes first."

Maccready's eyes turned momentarily to Natalie, a look of panic before he swallowed hard. "Let's get this over with…" He stepped forward, walking towards the center of the room. Jared grabbed Maccready by the shoulders, forcing him to stand in a spot Jared chose.

Natalie watched them, unsure of what to do. She swept her eyes around the room, practically everyone had guns. As Jared raised the baseball bat, preparing to swing at Maccready, she felt herself react out of panic, somehow managing to grab the gun from the guard's holster next to her. She quickly fired a shot at Jared, managing to hit his hand, before firing at the two guards standing next to her, taking them down instantly with headshots. "Run, Maccready!" She shouted out as gunfire erupted.

He was already on the move, grabbing the baseball bat that Jared dropped. He swung upwards, hitting the man square in the jaw and causing him to tumble backwards. He ran behind one of the vehicles, sneaking off somewhere. Natalie quickly hid behind one of the support beams, taking cover from the gunfire.

As the gunfire paused, she peeked around the side of the beam, looking for Maccready. She quickly fired a couple shots at one of the raiders trying to hit her from the scaffolding, hitting them in the leg and then in the chest. She looked around the room again, then began heading towards the stairs that lead to the second level scaffolds. Two raiders stood in front of her, aiming at her quickly. She fired two shots, hitting each of them in the chest. One of the raiders stumbled backwards from the gunshot and leaned against the railing, the other raider unloading two rounds into Natalie's leg.

Natalie pushed against the raider that leaned against the rail, causing them to fall over and land on the ground below. "Motherfucker!" She gasped out as she grabbed her leg, looking at the blood gushing out. The raider that was still on the scaffolding was lifting their gun, trying to line up a shot. Just as they were about to pull the trigger a distant shot was heard, the bullet penetrating the raider's head. Natalie's eyes darted towards the source of the gunshot, seeing Maccready on an upper level scaffolding. He aimed at a group of raiders that were on the same level as her, attempting to take them out one at a time.

Suddenly, large hands grabbed at her shoulders and pulled her into a hold. She struggled against the grip, scratching at the exposed skin. A hand covered her mouth, preventing her from screaming "Where are you going, blue bird?" Jared cackled as he lifted her off the ground, proceeding towards his office. "You little fuckers are going to die." He growled in her ear.

Natalie shifted her mouth enough to bite into the skin of Jared's hand. She clenched her jaw as tight as she could, feeling warm liquid fill her mouth.

"Bitch-" Jared gasped out as he tried to pull his hand from her mouth. He let go of her, trying to shove her away. "You fuckin' bit me!" He cried out in anger and disbelief.

She ran as best she could towards his office, her leg feeling sharp pains from the gunshot wounds. She looked around the small room for a weapon, her eyes catching a green box in the corner of the room. She swung it open, grabbing the makeshift rifle from it. She turned around, aiming at Jared as he walked in through the doorway. He gave her a wicked smile, slowly stepping towards her. "Look at you, blue bird… You're a lot tougher than I thought…"

She looked at him, her eyes a cold stare. She spit out the taste of his blood, watching him as he stumbled towards her. Maccready quickly walked into the room from the opposite side, rifle aimed up. "Shoot him, Natalie."

"No, that's too quick…" She kept the gun steady on him. "You got a knife?"

"Come on, don't waste time…" Maccready grumbled as he stepped closer to Natalie. "We should get out of here…"

Jared was smiling at her, inching closer. She shot at his leg three times, causing him to fall to the floor as he howled in pain. "Give me the knife…" She growled the words out as she reached her hand towards Maccready. Reluctantly, he handed the blade to her and returned to aiming his rifle at Jared. "You kept asking me what I saw." Natalie circled the man as he grabbed onto his leg, rolling in pain. "Here," She kneeled down next to him, running the blade across his cheek. "I'll show you what I saw." She swiftly moved the blade into his eye, messily twisting it into the flesh as he began to thrash around. She pulled the knife quickly, then jerked it into his other eye. Jared tried to struggle against her a moment before passing out.

She threw the blade down, wiping her hands over her vault suit to get rid of the blood that covered her hands. She looked over Maccready, whose face was in a stern look as his jaw was clenched. "So…" She mumbled as she looked over the body. His wouldn't survive the wounds, especially the gunshots. A part of her felt relieved he was finally gone, another part of her ashamed for the harsh act she committed. She quickly leaned forward, feeling what little contents she had in her stomach hurdle from her body.

Maccready took a step back, grimacing at the sight. "Jesus…" He mumbled as he swung the rifle over his shoulder. He stepped around the site of expulsion, moving to stand next to her. She heaved again, coughing a bit as she did. He patted her back, grabbing some of her loose hair and pulling it back to keep it from the stream. "Let it all out." He said with a half-joking tone.

As she finished emptying herself she stood back up, staring at the ceiling for a moment as she tried to relax. "Not too bad, huh?" She smirked at him.

"Eh, I mean… I've seen cleaner work…" He said as he pulled her away from the puddle of vomit.

"Ha, funny." She said with a stale tone. "I'm sorry, I just… I needed to do that, after everything he did to us…"

"I'd be lying if I said he didn't deserve it." Maccready mumbled as he kicked at the man's foot. "I'm just ready to get out of here." He grabbed the gun that Natalie discarded. "Here, you're gonna need a weapon. Maybe we can find a way to sneak out…?"

They slowly walked towards the elevator, Natalie limping as fast as she could. Maccready wrapped his arm across her back, letting her use him for support. He pressed the button, helping her settle against the wall for a moment as the elevator began to move. Natalie listened for a moment, hearing gunfire. "Hey, Maccready, do you hear that?"

"Yea…" He swallowed hard, wrapping his arm around her again. "Let's try to move quickly."

Natalie groaned in pain as she lifted from the wall. As soon as the doors opened, Maccready tried to run with her, but moved too fast and stumbled to the ground. Natalie gasped, feeling her leg sting in pain. "Fuu-" She leaned up, trying to push herself up from on top of Maccready's body.

"Stop right there," She heard a gravelly voice along with the feel of the weight of a gun on the back of her head.

"Hancock?" Maccready looked up in disbelief.

"Well, damn… I thought you guys were a couple of raiders…" Hancock chuckled. Natalie turned and met the ghoul's eyes. "Nate, they're over here! Came from the elevator." He reached out for Natalie's hand, trying his best to gently lift her off the ground.

"Thank god," Natalie gasped out, glad to see a friendly face. She rocked a bit forward, feeling weak from her wounds.

"You guys take out all the raiders in there?" Hancock asked.

"Yea, about ten guys total. Natalie did pretty good, took down the big boss herself." Maccready smiled at her.

Nate turned around the corner, eyes wide as he looked over Natalie. "You're alive." He muttered in slight disbelief. She reached an arm out to him. He stepped in and grabbed her into a tight hug. "I was so worried… God, I'm never leaving you alone again…"

"Ouch…" Natalie mumbled into his shoulder. "Sorry, I'm a little sore." Nate pulled back, looking over her face. "I thought you forgot about me…"

"Never, Natalie…" Nate sighed heavily. "We'll talk about everything later, let's get you guys out of here. Nick and Piper should be finishing up outside with the others. I think we wiped out all the ones in here." He wrapped a supporting arm around Natalie, helping her as she limped towards the exit.

"You need help, brother?" Hancock asked as he looked over Maccready.

"No, no… I'll be fine…" He shook his head. "Let's just get out of here…"

By the end of the day they were sitting in the police station. Nate and Danse had just returned from the ArcJet building. After Nate had helped them out, Danse offered him a position in the Brotherhood of Steel, feeling his skills could be a valuable asset. Nate agreed under one condition, his friends would be allowed to travel and even stay at brotherhood locations if needed.

Danse straightened his stance, a bit skeptical of the offer. "Only when they're travelling with you." He bargained.

"Fine." Nate agreed, reaching his hand out for a shaken agreement.

Danse reluctantly stuck his hand out, shaking Nate's hand.

Nate joined the others in one of the old offices, there were sleeping bags set up across the floor for them to sleep in for the night, before they returned to Goodneighbor the next day. Hancock was having a drink, sitting next to Maccready who was looking over an old Grognak comic. Natalie sat against the wall, a drink in her hand as well. Piper gently patted her shoulder as they spoke.

Nate stood against the door, watching them. It looked peaceful, despite all the things that they were dealing with. He breathed out, watching Piper run her fingers through Natalie's hair. He couldn't help but notice the motherly affection she gave Natalie, probably the same way she treated her sister. She walked away for a moment, grabbing Natalie's tattered backpack from the corner of the room and handing it to her. "Here you go, little blue." She smiled softly at her. "Figured you might want your things back."

"And mine!" Maccready whined playfully. Natalie laughed as she tossed his duster and hat to him, hitting him in the face in the process. He returned the laughter as he lazily placed his hat over his head, leaning back on against the wall as he continued reading.

Piper rolled her eyes, looking over her shoulder at Nate. She gave him a warm smile and sighed heavily. Nate found himself smiling back at her, watching her eyes quietly. He couldn't stay mad at her for not keeping an eye on Natalie. Besides, Natalie was a full grown woman, and he was starting to see that. She wasn't the scared little girl that woke up from the pod in the vault. Like him, she had changed in many ways.

"Hey, Nate." Nick called to him from the hallway, snapping him out of his thoughts. "I don't mean to rush things, but I wanted to remind you about the chip…" He pulled the device from his pocket.

"Oh, right…" Nate looked over it for a moment. "So who is it that can help us…?"

"That's the problem. They're an undercover group, very secretive. Very hard to find…" Nick sighed as he let Nate take the chip from him. "The Railroad…"

"Railroad?" Nate repeated. "Any idea where to start?"

"Well, Amari said they use a phrase to give people guidance. 'Follow the Railroad.'" He grumbled a bit. "I have no clue what that could mean, could be some sort of code."

Nate bit his lip as he thought it over. "We'll figure it out…" He sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I think it's fine for us to rest a bit, so let's just keep this between us for now."

"Sure thing," Nick smiled at him, giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder.

They returned to the others, sitting on the floor to make a deformed circle. They talked for a bit until everyone was too tired to keep up conversation. Maccready was the first to doze off, beer in hand. Hancock followed suit, although he had nearly ten beers and a few canisters of jet surrounding him. Nick decided to go for a walk, leaving just Piper, who was reading over some of her notes for the next paper, Nate, who was looking over the weapons they accumulated over the past couple days, and Natalie, who was still too anxious to sleep.

Nate looked over Natalie for a bit as she fiddled with her hands. They used the last couple of stimpaks to help her leg, but she still had scratches and bruises all over her hands, face, and neck. He swallowed hard, preparing to speak. "Natalie…"

She turned to him quickly with wide eyes. "Yea?" She said in almost a whisper. Piper looked at them from behind her paper.

"I don't want you getting mad at me... I just…" He pulled his hands together, intertwining his fingers as he tried to think of how to word his sentence. "I know you can take care of yourself… Now, I know… But before, I just… I thought maybe I could protect you from this… From all this pain." He swallowed hard, his throat feeling tight. Her features looked soft in the candlelight. "Seeing how everything is now, it makes me scared… I'm worried about what Sh-" His voice cracked and he stopped.

"What Shaun has had to go through?" Natalie finished his sentence, staring at the floor.

Nate looked down, not wanting to see her eyes. He could feel Piper watching them intently as he continued. "Yes…" He spoke quietly. "I just want him to be safe... I want to protect him, but I can't even protect you…" He felt his eyes watering, a sense of panic rising in him. "I couldn't protect Nora, I couldn't protect Shaun…" He felt the tightness spread to his chest, a deep pain he couldn't explain.

Natalie leaned forward, reaching to him. "Nate…" She whispered as she patted his shoulder.

 _Stop._

"Nate, it's ok." She smiled at him with sad eyes.

 _No, I won't…_

"You did protect me… You helped me survive…" He peeked up for a moment and noticed her eyes were welling with tears.

 _Fuck._

"And when we find Shaun, you're going to be able to protect him… He'll learn to survive because…" They were beginning to pour down her face. He tried not to look at her, but his eyes met hers.

 _No, no, no…_

"Because he's got a good father, he'll become a strong fighter, because you'll show him how to protect himself." Nate felt his own eyes welling more, his vision becoming blurry.

 _Fuck, fuck, fuck._

"Just like you taught me to protect myself." He felt the tears roll down his cheeks, turning his head to the side, trying to avoid looking at Natalie. For a moment he saw Piper, a look of concern on her face, but she didn't say anything. "Nate, it's ok. It's ok to feel these things." She spoke to him softly, but he couldn't help but feel ashamed.

He stood quickly, walking out the room and shutting the worn old door behind him. He made his way outside the building, feeling the cool air rush over him momentarily. He ran his hand over his eyes, wiping away the wetness. He breathed heavily, a rage building in his chest again, overshadowing his embarrassment from before. Looking around, he tried to find a release for his anger.

He grabbed the metal trash bin, chucking it at the ground. "Fuck!" He screamed out louder than he intended, then followed the trash bin as it rolled around. He kicked at it, denting in the side of the bin. "Motherfucking, FUCK!" He screamed out again, kicking a second time at the bin before picking it up and throwing it again with a grunt.

"Nate!" Piper called to him. "What are you doing?"

He breathed heavily, feeling the sting of his tears on his face. "I just…" He ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know…"

"Natalie, you just left her there…" Piper reached out for Nate's arm. "She was trying to help, you know."

"Yea, I know." He turned to face her, sniffing. "I just don't want her to see me like this… I feel… weak." He admitted as he avoided her eyes. She ran her hand up his arm comfortingly.

"Nate, it's not weak to cry…" She reached for his face. "I was scared, too. When my dad died, I didn't want Nat to think I was weak either. But you know what, crying with her. Being there to share those emotions. I think that's what helped us cope. I think it's what made me stronger…" She held onto Nate's hands, the feeling warm against his skin. "Don't be scared… Don't be afraid to tell people how you feel."

Nate looked over her for a moment, a strange feeling forming in his chest. Without thinking, he leaned down and kissed her. She pulled back for a moment, but he leaned in again, slowly. She didn't resist him. He reached his hand up, running it along her back. A strange mix of pain and desire flooded his chest as their bodies pulled together. "Piper…" He breathed heavily as they broke apart.

She looked up at him, her face inches from his in the embrace. She placed a hand on his cheek, looking into his eyes. "I care about you…" She whispered softly.

Nate blinked, but for a moment he thought he saw Nora in front of him. He pulled again into the kiss, his mouth pressing hotly on hers. He groaned against her lips as he began to push her, leading into the alleyway next to the building.

His mind flooded with visions of Nora. Her soft hands tracing his skin. The way she would laugh as he ran his tongue against her neck. He groaned again as he pressed his body to Piper's. Her hands began to undress him and he imagined Nora's running over his bare body. He undressed her slowly, imagining Nora's body emerging from the red trench coat. He ran his tongue over her body, focusing on the spots that he knew would drive Nora crazy.

Nate pulled their bodies to the ground, lowering themselves on the cold concrete. He paused as Piper shivered, looking over her body. He leaned back, stopping as he felt guilt swirl in his stomach. "I'm sorry…" He whispered.

Piper looked up at him in shock. "What's wrong?" She began to pull her jacket closed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…" She trailed off, sitting up. "I know, it's too soon. I shouldn't have…"

"No, Piper, it's not your fault." He sighed heavily, pulling his vault suit back up over his arms and zipping it all the way up. "I just… It's hard for me..." He sighed again. "Listen, I really like you, but… I don't know if I can move on yet… I'm not ready to forget her…"

"It's ok." Piper ran her hand up his arm. "You don't have to forget her. Your wife was a part of you, a very important part. I understand if it's too soon." She sighed and gave him a sad smile.

Nate looked over her face, cupping her cheek with his hand. "I care about you, to…" He kissed her softly on the forehead. "I just need time."

They returned to the room. Natalie was curled up in her sleeping bag. "Hey," Nate nudged at her shoulder gently.

She rolled over, her eyes red from crying. She didn't say anything, just sat up slowly and rubbed over her eyes.

"I'm sorry." Nate said quietly. "I just… I miss my family, and I don't want anything bad to happen to you. You're like family to me, Natalie…" He wrapped his arms around her gently, his heart aching in his chest.

She gripped onto him tightly and shook underneath his arms, gasping a bit as she began to cry. "I miss my family, too."

Nate held onto her as she continued to sob, letting his own tears fall freely. Piper ran her hand comfortingly across Natalie's back, tears running down her own cheeks. They stayed like that until Natalie drifted off to sleep. Nate covered Natalie with the loose flap of the sleeping bag, making sure she was covered enough to not get cold overnight. He and Piper slept in separate bags, facing each other. He reached his hand out to her, and she easily held onto it. A comforting grip as he dozed off. For the first time in a while, he felt like he slept easily through the night.


	17. Chapter 16: Breathe Easy

(Sorry this took so long, I'm trying to get better at uploading. Next chapter is going to be relatively short for reasons that will be explained at the end of the chapter. Hancock kind of disappears mid-chapter but there's a reason I've still got him hear. So please bear with my awkward writing haha!)

Chapter 16: Breathe Easy

Nate rolled over on the hard floor, waking up from the cracks of sunlight that peeked through broken windows. He groaned, sitting up and stretching. Everyone else must have woken up already, leaving him alone in the room.

He walked out, heading into the foyer of the police station. Paladin Danse greeted him immediately as he entered the room. "Morning, soldier. Sleep well?" He asked with a bit of a smile.

"Yea, I guess I did..." Nate answered with a yawn, still feeling the dreariness of waking up.

"That's great to hear, we've got important matters to attend to. Elder Maxson is wanting to meet with you immediately."

"Elder Maxson?" Maccready asked with a shocked expression. "You mean from the East coast BOS?"

"Exactly, and it's very important we meet with him immediately." Danse turned to Haylen. "Is the vertibird here?"

"Yes, sir. They're ready whenever you are." She replied with an attentive stance.

"Wait, wait…" Nate raised his hands in protest. "I've got my own things to take care of."

Danse stared at him in thought. "I assure you the Elder will not keep you long." After a moment he added. "I can postpone, but only two days at the most."

Nate groaned a bit, trying to think of a way to get out of it. Rhys, one of Danse's men, spoke up from the corner of the room. "It is disrespectful to keep your commanding officer waiting…"

Nate glared at him. It was like being back in the military, and once you make a commitment like that there's no going back. "Two days…" Nate said after a moment. "We'll gather our things and meet you here in two days." He could only hope that he didn't get too caught up with the affairs of the brotherhood. He still needed to find Shaun.

Danse and his team left to another room, possibly talking about how 'disrespectful' Nate was being. Nate pulled up his own chair to the small table in the room where everyone sat, taking the spotd next to Hancock. "Fuck…" He groaned.

"Yea, that's how these brotherhood assholes make you feel." He mumbled as he took a sip from a small glass.

"Don't worry, Nate…" Nick spoke encouragingly to him. "I'll head back to Diamond City and see if I can find any information on the Railroad while you're gone."

"The Railroad?" Hancock asked with wide eyes.

"Yea, you know anything about them?" Nate asked.

"Nah, just the usual stuff. They're secretive… Hard to find… What's got you involved with them?" He took another small sip from his cup.

"My son… Someone kidnapped him. We think it's people from the Institute…" Nate sighed heavily, casting a glance to Maccready as he made a sound of dissapproval. Piper reached a comforting hand to him from across the table. "We think we've found a way inside, but-"

"Wait, inside the Institute?" Natalie interrupted, shock written over her face.

"Turns out they use molecular relay… Teleporation…" Nick responded.

"Well, damn…" Hancock stared blankly with wide eyes.

"Anyways, I'm hoping the Railroad has some answers… Or can help us in some way…" Nate looked over his pip boy for a moment. "Ok, Nick… I'll meet you in Diamond City as soon as I'm done with everything."

"Sure thing." He tilted his hat as he stood up.

"Wait, I think I'm going to head back, too." Piper said quietly. She turned to face Nate. "That talk we had got me thinking… I really should go and visit my sister, let her know I'm safe…" She walked to the opposite side of the table, meeting Nate with a hug as he stood up. "Let me know when you come back…" She whispered in his ear. "And be safe." She said as she released him, giving him a warm smile.

"You too," He returned the smile.

Natalie stood up, giving Piper a hug as well. "See you soon." She said while patting her back.

Hancock tilted his chair back a bit, his hands behind his head. "I hope you guys don't mind me tagging along…?"

"Yea, but hopefully you haven't missed out on too many of your mayoral duties." Nate joked.

Hancock flicked his wrist at the comment, scoffing. "Fahr's got things under control. 'Sides, I kind of miss the open road. It's giving me a chance to really… Humble myself." He tilted his head to Maccready. "What about you, Mac? You need to head back to Goodneighbor?"

"Oh, right…" Maccready looked at Natalie. "I actually need to… talk to you… if you don't mind." He cleared his throat. "In private…" He added in a hushed tone. Hancock let out a giggle, to which Maccready simply glared.

"Oh, sure…" Natalie stood up.

Nate watched as they left the room, leaving just him and Hancock. "They seem to be getting along well." He said with a smirk.

"Yea, I suppose they are." Hancock gave him a toothy grin.

Natalie followed Maccready outside, unsure of what he needed to talk about. He stepped into the alleyway next to the building, turning to face Natalie as he cleared his throat. "I know we went through a lot of stuff together, and I feel kind of bad for asking this, especially since you and Nate have your own problems…" He huffed, crossing his hands across his chest as he looked off to the side. "I wouldn't even be asking for your help if I didn't trust you…"

Natalie looked at him, confused. "Come on, Maccready. Just say it." She gave a soft, nervous laugh.

"Can you help me take out Winlock and Barnes? I understand if you don't want to, especially after all the sh… crap we went through with those slavers…" He uncrossed his arms, placing his hands in his pockets. "They're just making it tough for me to get my work done, since they're running off all my customers…"

"Maccready, it's fine…" Natalie gave another small laugh, realizing how hard it must be for him to ask for help. "Whenever we're done in Sanctuary we can head over."

"What about Nate?" Maccready asked.

"Oh, right…" She shrugged a bit. "I'll convince him to let me go…"

"Yea…" He breathed in slowly. "How about this, if you want to help we can just head out whenever. Besides, you're basically my employer now so I'm gonna follow your lead."

"What?" Natalie laughed, thinking he must be joking. "How'd you end up with that conclusion?"

"Well, I do owe you my life. Since you _did_ help me escape." He gave her a smirk.

"Yea, but I probably would've died if you didn't help me out."

"Hey, don't argue. Just accept it…" Maccready squinted his eyes at her, a playful look. "I'm giving you a heck of a deal… plus it helps not being indebted to other people."

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Fine, whatever you say."

"Natalie!" Nate called out from the front of the building. "Let's head out!"

Natalie looked over her shoulder. "Ok!" She shouted in reply. "Let's go, before they think we're up to something." She stuck her tongue out playfully as she walked away, noticing the small blush that crossed his cheeks as he grinned at her.

Nate felt relief as he saw the Sanctuary Hills sign. He also noticed a couple of turrets, probably something Sturges had set up for defense. A few of the buildings had been torn down, probably scrapped for resources. Nate watched Preston as he walked along the riverside of the small town. "Preston!" He shouted out, giving a friendly wave.

Preston turned quickly, a serious expression on his face, before he saw who they were. He smiled brightly, waving back at Nate. "Hey! Nate, what are you doing here!?" He began to walk towards them at a semi-jogging pace.

"Hey, we needed a place to get our things together." Nate reached out a friendly handshake, but Preston ignored it and pulled him into a half hug.

"It's good to see you're doing well out here." He smiled at him as he patted his shoulder. "Any news on your son?"

Nate's smile disappeared for a moment, "We're still looking for him. We've know where he is, we've just got to make a way to get to him…"

"That's unfortunate…" Preston frowned. "The Institute, I'm guessing?"

"Yea," Nate sighed. "Anyways, it looks like you're doing pretty well yourself." He smiled as best he could again.

"Well, I'm glad you think so. We're doing our best, and so far we've been ok…" He looked over Nate a moment, then motioned for him to follow. "Let me take you to where we've set up shop."

They walked slowly, Hancock, Maccready and Natalie talking quietly as they followed behind. Preston continued their conversation. "I've actually got a huge favor to ask you. I know you've still got a lot on your plate, but I don't think I can do this on my own."

Nate sighed heavily, unsure if he was ready to take on another task. Preston noticed, sighing quietly himself. "What is it?" He finally asked.

"We're trying to rebuild the Minutemen, but I really need your help. With all the attacks we get here, I can't leave to recruit more people. I'm trying my best, but I don't think I've got what it takes."

"What makes you think I do?" Nate asked with genuine curiosity.

"You saved us in Concord. There wasn't anything in it for you, you had your own problems to deal with, but you did it anyways." He met Nate's eyes as he spoke. "That kind of selflessness has been in mighty short supply around here for quite a while… And we need someone who can bring the whole Commonwealth together in a common cause. I think you've got it in you to be that leader…"

Nate bit into his cheek, thinking it over. Although he had just joined the Brotherhood, he hadn't really planned to stick with them. It was mostly to reassure the group had a place to rest. He still needed to find Shaun, but at least he knew Shaun was safe. Kellogg wouldn't have gone through that much trouble to take him in the first place if he was just going to off him at some later point in time, so there'd be no reason for him to lie about his safety. "Let me think it over." Nate said, still wanting to weigh things out.

"Ok, just let me know. We could really use your help. There's plenty of people out there who need it, too." He said as they continued on.

They had set up the communal sleeping area in the house across from Nate's old house. This place appeared to become their main meeting spot, with a couple of turrets rigged at the edge of the roof to protect them. Crops grew in the backyard, mostly tato plants.

Sturges was sitting at a small table, enjoying a bottled water. He gave a short wave and bright smile. "Hey, guys. It's good to see ya!" He stood up, shaking Nate's hand.

"Hi, Sturges. Pretty good set up. Did you fix up all the turrets around here?" Nate asked.

"Sure did," He smiled proudly, "I even got enough parts to build a small water purifier. I actually just patched it up yesterday, some scavengers were trying to tear it apart. Guess they wanted to get some of the parts or something." He shrugged. "Anyways, would you like a bottle?"

"Sure." Nate nodded.

"How 'bout you guys?" He asked, motioning towards Maccready, Natalie and Hancock.

"Yea, I'd love some." Maccready said with a bit more excitement than intended. Natalie and Maccready followed Sturges as he went to the other room.

"I'm fine," Hancock politely declined, pulling out his jet.

"Oh, I don't mean to be rude but would you mind not using that here?" Preston tried to indiscreetly gesture towards the elderly woman sitting on a couch. "Mama Murphy's been trying to quit, I don't want her to fall back into it…"

"Ah," Hancock chuckled softly. "You mind if I take a walk then and see the set up?"

"Go ahead," Preston smiled at him.

"So, I noticed a lot of the houses out here have been scrapped…" Nate looked out the broken window.

"Don't worry, we left your house alone. I haven't even let anyone in there to scrap the furniture inside." Preston smiled comfortingly at Nate.

Nate breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm going to look at it, I haven't been in there since the day we left Sanctuary."

"Go ahead, take your time…" Preston tilted his head in a small nod.

"Thanks…" He sighed heavily.

Nate held his breath as he pushed his palm against the door, it swung open slowly. Dust particles flew softly through the air as he stepped inside, taking in the sight of his tattered house. "Home sweet home…" He mumbled to himself as he walked towards his old bedroom.

Nate looked at the destroyed bed, kicking some of the boards out the way as he went to his dresser. He grabbed the picture frame that was lying face-down. The image was extremely faded, but he could still see Nora underneath the aged wear. Her bright smile, hair falling loosely around her face. Pretty lips that were probably painted red at the time, but were faded to pink… beautiful brown eyes that pulled you in. He ran his finger over the image, sighing heavily. "You didn't deserve to go the way you did…" He felt his eyes watering at the memory of her death.

He pulled the image out of the frame, folding it and sticking it in his pocket. "You were something amazing, Nora…" Nate spoke to the air. "Always helped me stay straight and steady. I know it took a while for us to get where we needed to, but we were happy." He swallowed hard, feeling a knot in his throat. "I just wish I could've held you longer… Kissed you more…" He wiped a stay tear that fell. "Told you I loved you more often…" He gave a small laugh, leaning his palms against the dresser as he wept. "You would be telling me I'm crazy if you heard me now… 'You're doing more than enough' you would tell me…" He dug his fingers against the top of the wooden dresser. "You always saw the best in me, even when I was at my worst…" He wiped his eyes, giving a pathetic sob as he remembered his wife. He remembered how gentle she was, yet how strong she could be.

There was a slight whirring sound, Nate quickly turned to see Codsworth move into the room. "Sir, I-I hope I'm not interrupting… I saw that you returned and I remembered that I-I found this holotape. I think mum was planning to give it to you, before everything happened..." He pulled the holotape out of one of his compartments, extending a mechanical arm towards Nate.

Nate reached and grabbed it, giving a small nod as he opened the compartment. He waited for Codsworth to leave before playing the tape. "Oopsie…" She gave a small laugh as Shaun's infant babbles played in the background. "No, no… Little fingers away. There we go… Ok, just say it. Right there, right there." Shaun whined a bit before letting out a giggle.

"Yay!" She laughed again. Nate felt the tears begin again, streaming mercilessly down his cheeks. He tried to imagine her happy smile, bright and beautiful. "Hi Honey!" Nate placed a hand over his mouth, trying to hold back his sobs as he felt the aching in his chest take over. He leaned against a wall and slowly slid down, listening to Nora's voice as she gave him praises… Praises he felt he didn't deserve. But he listened to them, because he wanted to hear her sweet voice speak to him.

He played the tape over and over. After what felt like hours he looked outside the window to see how low the sun had gotten. He rubbed his eyes, feeling how puffy they were from crying and sighed a bit. He stood up, his head throbbing from the pressure, and began to head outside.

Codsworth whirred through the living room, stopping whenever he saw him. "Sir, can I help with anything?"

"Codsworth… Get me a shovel…" Nate said hoarse voice.

"A shovel, sir? Might I inquire what it may be for?" He asked.

"I just have something I need to take care of…" Nate said as he looked through the cabinet in the kitchen.

"May I be of assistance?" Codsworth ask with a friendly tone.

"No, I… I need to do this alone…" Nate said as he felt relief from finding his old whiskey in the cabinet. He opened the top, sighing heavily before he took a big gulp. Codsworth didn't respond, just simply floated off to find Nate a shovel. Nate held his breath for a second as he let the whiskey burn down his throat. He closed his eyes, preparing himself mentally for what was to come.

"We've got plenty of water, so take as many as you need." Sturges informed as he opened a large crate.

Natalie grabbed one of the bottles, taking a large gulp. Maccready laughed "Slow down, you're gonna drown yourself."

Natalie coughed a bit as the water slid down the wrong pipe. "Christ, it's been _so_ long since I've had fresh tasting water." She took another swig.

Sturges laughed, grabbing another bottle for her. "Well, if you like it that much you might as well bathe in it."

"You have no idea how much I'd love that…" Natalie groaned, remembering how dirty and sticky she was underneath her vault suit.

"We've actually got a community shower, if you want to use that." Sturges suggested. "Barely set it up last week, so the water comes out kind of slow. But it's clean."

"Really?" Natalie gasped, getting goosebumps at the idea of being able to scrub all the grime off her skin.

Maccready rolled his eyes. "I'll pass. I bet that water is freezing."

Sturges laughed. "Yea, mostly. Hey, it helps when you're covered in dirt and blood, though." His smile turned into a bit of a grimace. "Oh, you might want to ask someone to watch outside the shower… We've got this new settler that joined us. A bit of a nut case… We, uh… caught the guy sneaking a peek at Marcy when she was washing up one day…"

Natalie's eyes went wide, a frown forming on her face. Maccready let out a laugh the instant he saw it. "Come one, not that bad. At least he didn't try to join in."

Sturges rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Well, he blames it on chems, but I don't know. There's something off. But, hey, we needed the help. He's a pretty decent shot…" He cleared his throat. "Anyways, we built the shower near the edge of the river to make the water line easier to connect. Feel free to use that, let us know if you need anything else."

Natalie waved goodbye as he walked out the room. She shot Maccready a look of uncertainty. "If you let that creeper walk in on me I'm going to shoot you in the foot and then shoot him."

"Aww, man. I was hoping to get a good laugh today." Maccready gave an exaggerated frown.

The shower was a decent set up, given the materials they were working with. Wooden walls and a metal floorboard with a drain pad that lead somewhere underground. Pipes underground ran straight from the water up into a makeshift showerhead. There was no door leading to the shower, but a small hallway that blocked the vision of whoever was inside from being seen outside.

Maccready sat in the chair that was left outside the shower. "You happen to have a cigarette?" He asked as he tilted his hat back a bit.

Natalie reached in her pack, managing to pull out a small box. "God, I don't even remember picking these up." She laughed.

"On the way here I noticed you and Nate like to pick up a lot of junk… That stuff just weighs you down." He grabbed the pack as she handed it to him.

She scoffed, rolling her eyes. "You say that but you'd be surprised how many times Nate has been able to make useful things with that 'junk.'" She pulled out a bar of soap from her bag. "I'm _really_ glad I picked this up. Make sure you keep an eye out."

"Yea, yea…" Maccready lit the cigarette, taking a long drag.

Natalie looked around the shower room, kicking her shoes off in the corner and tossing her bag over them. She peeled out of her clothes, relieved to get out of the stale material. She looked over her body for a moment, examining some scars that were beginning to form from wounds. There was a knot over the gunshot wound from Kellogg, the scar across her forearm from the fight in Concord. She sighed heavily. "I guess you do start to get used to it…" She whispered to herself.

She turned the knob for the water, a clanking sound before the water spurted out from the head. It was cold, but nothing she couldn't bear for a while. She ran her fingers under the water, shivering a bit as she tried to adjust her hand to the temperature. She closed her eyes, stepping straight under the shower head, letting out a gasp as the cold water trailed down her backside. "Jesus!" She gasped out.

"You alright?" Maccready asked.

"Yea, it's just… cold." She pouted.

"Knew it would be." She could hear the smug tone in his voice.

"You probably need this more than I do." She snickered as she grabbed the soap, beginning to lather it.

"Wow, how nice of you to notice." He said sarcastically. "Wouldn't ever catch me naked, dead or alive."

"Ever? I doubt that…" Natalie said with a snort.

"It just leaves you too open to enemies." She could hear the serious tone in his voice.

"Well, that's why you have someone to watch your back." She ran her hands through her hair, attempting to get out the tangles. "Like this, with you watching my back."

"I've never really had anything like… this." She could barely hear him over the machine spouting out water. "Never someone I could trust… Everyone's got their own agenda, and most people wouldn't think twice about sticking a knife in your back if it meant benefitting them."

"Times certainly have changed…" Natalie sighed. "I mean, there were always liars and snakes back then… But most people were pretty good…"

"Yea, well it's very rare now…" She heard him sigh heavily. "The nicest person I ever met was Lucy… She could barely even kill bloatfly without feeling guilty."

Natalie sighed. "I'm sorry she passed away…"

"Yea, me too." She heard him say softly. "It's gotten easier with time… To talk about it…"

She finished rinsing herself off, her skin looking a bit paler without the dirt and grime over it. She reached into her bag, pulling out some jeans and a plain t-shirt she was able to pick up on their way to Sanctuary. She decided not to put her underwear on, wanting to clean it along with her other clothes. Luckily, she wasn't too voluptuous and others wouldn't be able to tell unless they were physically touching her.

She walked out barefoot, carrying her bag by the handle in one hand and her pile of dirty clothes and shoes in the other. She tossed the bag at Maccready's feet. "Take a shower…" She said in as stern a voice she could muster.

"Hel—Heck no." He protested. "I already told you—"

"I know, but it'll make you feel better. Trust me. I'll be here to watch you, and you can trust I won't let any peeping Toms find their way inside." She gave him a smirk.

He rolled his eyes. "I'd really rather not."

Natalie bit her lip, frowning a bit as she stared at him. "Fine, as your new boss I order you to take a shower."

He let out a burst of laughter. "That's not how that works! I'm a hired gun, not some slave."

Natalie groaned. "Come on, Maccready! Hygiene is important. What if you get, like… fungus… or something."

Maccready rolled his eyes, letting out a huff as he pulled off his hat. "Fine, fine… But only because I'd rather not turn into a walking infection." He placed the hat on Natalie's head.

Natalie smiled gleefully in triumph. He walked into the shower room, leaving his chair open for Natalie to sit in.

She heard him cut the water on, followed by an embarrassingly loud yelp. "Mother fu—This is _really_ cold!" She heard him whine.

"Then make it quick, I left the soap in there for you." Natalie said. She looked over her arm again, this time noticing more scratches. "I don't even remember getting some of these."

"Some of what? More junk." Maccready said with a stale voice.

Natalie rolled her eyes. "No, some of these scratches. I guess you really do get used to the pain." She sighed. "I think it'll take a while to get used to the scars, though."

"Yea, I'm still not really used to them." Maccready said.

"But… You told me-"

"That doesn't mean I've gotten used to it… It's just something I've heard people say." He gave a small laugh.

Natalie felt her face fall into a frown of disappointment. He cut the water off and after a moment was out the shower and fully dressed, trying to shake water from his hair. She laughed as it splashed onto her. "Hey, watch it."

"This is your punishment, for making me do something I hate." He laughed softly, attempting to splash more water on her.

Natalie stood up, grabbing her bag as she laughed more. "Come on, let's go find out where we're sleeping tonight…"

"Natalie…" Maccready stopped her, tugging gently on her arm. "I uh… I was wondering where do… you and I stand?" He asked, his tone changed in an instant to something completely serious.

Natalie swallowed hard, feeling a lump in her throat. "Where…?" She repeated the question. They never really discussed the kiss. She thought it was better that way, to let things continue at a slower pace. But maybe it left him feeling unsure… Hell, even she felt unsure of their relationship. "I really like you…" She said quietly.

"Yea, I mean I really like you too, but… How serious is this?" Maccready stepped closer to her, placing his hands on her shoulders. A look of worry was across his face. "Am I going to wake up one day and… you won't be there?"

Natalie shook her head. "No, I wouldn't just leave you…" She grabbed his hands, running her thumbs over the backs of his. "Maccready… when it comes to love… I don't know how close we are, I mean I don't even know your first name." Her face began to turn red from embarrassment. "But I… as long as you're here for me… I'll be here for you…"

He breathed out shakily, letting his hands trail to her back, rubbing up and down smoothly to help relax her. "That sounds good to me…" He gave her a warm smile as he took his hat back. "Robert… It's Robert Joseph Maccready…"

"Oh…" Natalie smiled back at him. "That's a nice name…" She let out a giggle as she attempted to repeat it. "Robert Joseph Maccready." It felt a bit strange to say, after calling him by his last name for so long. When he didn't say anything her face started turning red. Maybe it sounded weird to him too? "Should I just stick to Maccready?"

"No," He replied quickly, and suddenly kissed her. "I like it…" He breathed softly. Natalie froze, not expecting him to kiss her. He continued, his lips hot over hers. She grabbed onto his duster, pulling him a bit closer. She stood on her toes so he didn't have to lean down so much. He placed his hand behind her neck, cradling it as he deepened the kiss.

She felt herself melting into him, their mouths pressing against each other. She knew she had to be red as the tato plants they had growing outside, but she didn't care. Every time his teeth would run over her lip it sent something shivering down her spine.

Maccready slowed the kisses, ending them with a final lick over her lips with his tongue. "Let's find somewhere private." He said with a smirk.

Natalie nodded, pushing her hair behind her ear. He grabbed her hand as she followed him to a private destination.

Nate walked up the hill leading to the vault. His heart felt heavy, but mostly he was nervous. He decided to give Nora a proper burial. Take her out of that damn vault. She didn't deserve to rot away like that, in some metal frozen tomb. Nate sighed as he approached the gate, remembering how they barely made it in time to check in. A minute later and they probably would've been left to the radiation.

He stepped into the small control room, hitting the button to lower the platform. It began to set off a buzzer and he dashed over to the platform before it began lowering. It felt like it took forever to reach the bottom, the entire time his mind replayed that fateful day. It felt like centuries ago… Technically it had been, but it also felt like he had just seen Nora yesterday. He sighed, rubbing his eyes. Despite all the whiskey he was still much too sober for his liking.

He followed the corridors leading to the room where his cryogenic cell was kept. He looked at the open door of his cell. Nora's body was right across, locked away in her own chamber. He took deep breath, trying to prepare himself to see her again. He kept his eyes on the ground as he stepped forward. When he reached her chamber he closed his eyes, facing his body towards the machine. He prayed to the heavens that her body was still intact. That the machine had managed to keep her frozen after all these years.

He quickly opened his eyes, looking at her frozen, lifeless body. She looked the same as the day he left her. Her eyes closed gently, a single tear frozen on her cheek, the blood stain in a concentrated area on her abdomen. Her features looked soft, almost angelic under the fluorescent light from the chamber. "Nora…" Nate whispered as he placed his hand on the glass.

After a moment of looking over her, he reached and pulled the lever for the machine. The robotic voice whirred as the door opened. Nate took a step back as it moved, watching the mist that released from the mechanical chamber. He grabbed Nora's body, her skin still chilled, but now pliable from the release of the cryogenic state.

He moved her body as gently as possible, feeling how lightweight she was under his arms. Her head swung back, laying over his arm as he carried her to the vault's exit. Her hair swayed as he stepped slowly, looking over her face every now and then. He half expected her to open her eyes and wake up. Her body still looked as if it had life in it, although he knew that wasn't true.

He made the long journey back down the hill, struggling every now and then to not slip down the steep hill. He was glad it was dark, so no one could see him carrying the body. He finally made it to his house, laying Nora's body down on an old rug he took from the living room. She looked peaceful, like a sleeping angel. He sighed, running his hand over her cheek as tears began to roll down his cheek again. "I'm sorry Nora…" Nate mumbled to himself as he stood up. He grabbed the corners of the rug before letting out a groan as he tried to move her carefully. Something turned his gut, making him feel anxious. He felt like part of him was losing her again. He let go of the rug, running his hands through his hair. "Fuck, I can't do this… I can't bury her… She's my fucking wife-"

"Nate?" Preston looked around the corner of the house. "Are you ok? I haven't heard from you…"

Nate ran his hands over his eyes, trying to stop the tears. "Yea, I'm fine…" He nodded quickly, his back to the man. "I just…"

"Is that… your wife?" He asked, his tone soft and concerned.

Nate nodded again, a frown on his face as he felt tears fill his eyes again. He didn't want to turn around, not while he was crying. He took in a deep breath "Yea, that's her… I wanted to… Give her a proper burial…" He calmed himself before turning slowly, hoping the moonlight didn't show his face.

"I can help you… If you need help lowering her…" Preston said. He saw the expression Nate wore, his own face falling into a solemn frown. Nate wondered if he ever had to lay down someone he loved before. If he could empathize with what was going on. He must have, in order to know how hard it was to do it alone.

Nate nodded quietly, wiping his eyes again before reaching for the corners of the rug near her head.

Preston quietly followed suit, grabbing the edges near her feet. They lowered her slowly, careful to not misplace her body. Nate watched her face the entire time, trying to get a good image in his head, in case anything ever happened to the picture. He never wanted to forget her. After they buried her, Preston left Nate alone, giving him some of the alcohol from the community food. Nate stayed up drinking the whole night, remembering all the moments he shared with the woman he loved.

(Next chapter is going to be short because it will be a sex scene, smut whatever you want to call it. It's not completely necessary for the story, but I know some people enjoy reading the intimate moments, so this is a heads up. I'll have that chapter posted ASAP. If you don't want to read it, I understand and that's why I'm posting it separately. Thanks again for all the support, let me know if you guys have any suggestions or if you even have questions.)


	18. Chapter 17: Intimacy

****This chapter contains adult sexual content****

Chapter 17: Intimacy

Maccready quickly led Natalie into an old house, pulling her in for another kiss as he shut the door behind them. He ran his tongue over her lips, pushing in between to fish her tongue out. She gasped a bit, allowing him to roam her mouth as she also explored his. She knew he wasn't one to hold back, but she also didn't expect him to be so bold.

He reached his hand into her hair, tugging a bit as he urged her to pull her head back. She allowed him access, his lips pressing hotly against her skin. She took this moment to explore him with her hands, running her hand across his clothed chest, the material feeling thick underneath her palms. She groaned a bit in frustration, quickly shoving her hand underneath the duster. He giggled a bit, grabbing her arm gently. Natalie looked up at him, confused. "Something funny?"

"No, no… I was…" He leaned back into her neck. "Let's keep going." He whispered as he continued to press soft kisses on her skin.

She continued with her hands, but stopped when she noticed him writhing a bit under her touch. "Am I hurting you?" She asked as she pulled back.

"No, I'm fine." His face held a slightly pained expression.

"Maccready…" Natalie whined a bit. "If you're hurt just tell me." She grabbed at his duster, pulling it off. He didn't protest, but when she went to move the shirt he wore underneath it he squirmed a bit and used his arms to block himself. "Let me see, you might need a stimpak." She pushed his arms out the way.

"No, I'm fine." He let her pull his shirt up.

She looked over his bare skin. He was thin, but she could see the formation of muscle underneath his skin. She felt her face turning red, but kept exploring him. "I don't see anything…" Her hand reached out to touch his abdomen, and he quickly leaned back, laughing as he flinched away. "Oh…" She smirked as she realized the reason he was having trouble keeping still. "So you're ticklish, huh?" She looked up at him with a devilish grin.

"Just a bit…" He said with a worried look. "Please don't go around tickling me in public, that'd be embarrassing…" He rubbed the back of his neck.

"Thanks for giving me the idea." Natalie smirked as she reached for his shirt again, tugging it upwards until he pulled it off. He tossed what clothes had been removed onto a nearby couch, his hat landing on the floor next to the couch. Natalie took in his image. He was lean, but mostly muscle on his arms and chest. He probably built it up after years of carrying his rifle. "You're a lot more… muscle… than I expected." She admitted as she stepped back a bit to admire the view.

"Well, you know I don't like to brag, but…" Maccready chuckled, reaching out to pull her into him. Her hands roamed his chest gently as he leaned in to begin kissing her again. He slowly walked them down the hallway, to where she hoped would be a bed so they could continue their ventures more comfortably. She felt something hit the back of her knees and barely got a chance to see it was a metal framed bed before Maccready leaned her back onto it gently.

Every now and then he'd flinch under her touch as her hands explored, but she would move her hands so not to bother him as they continued. She felt a hand roaming up her torso, and quickly remembered she wasn't wearing a bra. He didn't seem to mind, though, because as soon as he felt the smooth skin of her chest his thumb began to circle her nipple.

She gasped against his touch, goosebumps running up her skin. His lips were on her neck again, a hand placed at the small of her back while the other remained adamantly on her hardening nipple. He pulled his hand away for a moment, but only to quickly tug her shirt over her head. She subconsciously began to pull her arms up to cover her chest, but he grabbed her wrists quickly. "Not so fast," He said with a quiet snicker.

She watched him as his mouth began to lower to her chest. She squirmed underneath his tongue. It swirled smoothly over her erect nipple, the tip feeling extremely sensitive as his mouth pulled at her. He'd switch between a sucking action and the motion of his tongue rolling over the mound. Every movement sent a new wave of heat through Natalie's body. She felt herself getting lightheaded, barley even realizing his hands were already working on the zipper of her jeans. He tugged at the material, leaning up to help her wiggle out of them.

"Well, well… Aren't you adventurous?" Maccready said with a teasing tone, noting that she didn't have underwear on.

"Don't get too used to it, this a special occasion." She replied as she stuck her tongue at him playfully.

"You keep doing that with your tongue and I'll have to put it to good use." He remarked as he tossed the jeans to the corner of the room.

"You're one to talk, with how much you run your mouth." She retorted.

"You've got a point." He said as he grabbed her legs, pulling her hips to the end of the bed.

"Wh-wait what are you-?" She gasped as she felt his tongue trailing her inner thigh. She tried to pull back. Even with Jeff, despite how much he liked making her happy, he had never put his mouth on her… there. "Mac-Maccready wait, I-"

His tongue left wet spots as he kissed down her thigh, closing in on her heat. Her head felt woozy, the room practically spinning as heat rushed over her body. She tried to move from the grip he had on her legs, but to no avail.

She gasped out again, feeling his hot breath against her sex. "Robert!" She whined. He was teasing her, taking his time looming over her sweet spot.

His eyes darted up to her, a grin on his face. "Yes, Natalie?" He gave a small kiss to the side of her thigh again.

"Pl… Please…" She breathed heavily. "I've never done this… you're making me anxious…"

"Wait… Are you a virgin?" He leaned up completely from her body with a shocked expression.

"No, no…" She let out a weak laugh. "It's just that… It wasn't common for a guy to… y'know…" She felt shy all of a sudden, his eyes watching over her body.

"Go down on a girl?" He finished her thought. "Wow…" He looked at her with disbelief. "So what about the other way?"

Natalie leaned up on her elbows. "For a girl to give head? All the time…" She laughed softly as he looked confused at her.

"That doesn't make sense…" He scoffed. "So you've… gone down before?" He asked in a somewhat whispered tone.

"I can show you, how we did it back then…?" She teased as she bit into her lip.

His cheeks began to burn even brighter red. "That sounds tempting…" He said with a deep tone. "But first…" He moved at a speed that Natalie could barely register. He spread her legs quickly, his mouth hitting the soft bundle of nerves at the tip of her sex. She let out a yelp, but it quickly faded to moans as his tongue ran hotly over her skin.

She felt her legs wanting to close, wrap around him, but his hands held her firmly in place. Her hand darted down, attempting to push his mouth off of her, but he wouldn't move. She gripped at his hair, letting out louder moans as she felt something building up in her abdomen. She covered her face with one hand, her ears burning from the heat. "Rob, I… I feel…" She tried to form words, but trailed off into moans and short gasps.

Suddenly, a finger darted into her. She felt it roll smoothly, sending a heat throughout her body like shockwaves. Her free leg snapped close, causing Maccready to be squished in between her legs. Then she felt it, something hot. Her heart was beating at an ungodly speed while she felt something warm rush all over her body. Washing her from the inside out. Everything began to feel fuzzy and she couldn't control the noises that escaped her mouth. "Robert…" She moaned softly as the heat began to cool down, leaving her tingly and weak. He slowly pulled his finger out, licking over it as he stood up.

She looked at the crotch of his pants, his member straining underneath the material. She sat up slowly, her head still feeling woozy. He looked at her with a prideful grin. "So, how was that?" He asked as he removed his shoes. "I hope your first time was as amazing for you as it was for me…" He joked.

She felt a blush crawl over her face as she pulled his pants down along with his underwear. He gasped at the release, his member bouncing a bit as it steadied firmly. Natalie looked over him, inspecting the vein that ran up the side. He was relatively thick and about average length. Uncircumcised, the head took on a reddish color as precum dripped down the tip. She held her breath a moment as her hand wrapped around the base. Maccready sighed at the contact, and she looked up at him with a smirk. His eyes were locked on hers and when she opened her mouth he let out a short gasp.

She began to introduce him to her tongue, the underside of it rolling across the tip. His hips jerked a bit as he moaned, but he pulled back more to give her room. She worked her palm against him for a moment, and whenever she began to take him deeper, he suddenly stopped her. "Hey, maybe we should uh… save that for another time…" He gave her a soft smile as she frowned a bit, his chest heaving as he caught his breath. "It's been a while and… I'm not going to last much longer… and I'd at least like to go inside…"

"Oh…" Natalie nodded in understanding. She scooted back onto the bed, he followed closely after her, practically crawling over her body. He reached a hand up, gently trailing it into her hair as he placed kissed on her cheek and forehead. She ran her hands up his back, feeling the muscles as he adjusted his weight above her.

Hi hand reached between them, hers following along as well. He pushed his head against her opening, the tip of it feeling hot and slick against her skin. "Ready?" He asked softly.

She nodded slowly, preparing herself for him. He pushed in slowly, she felt his head slide in slowly. She bit into her lip, a dull pain around her entrance. She pushed her hips up a bit, urging him to go deeper.

He slid into her, inch by inch. He was holding his breath, but let out a sigh as he bottomed out. "Oh, fuck…" He groaned as he slid out slowly. "You're really… tight…" He breathed heavily as he tried to move at a steady pace.

Natalie didn't say anything, unable to speak as she let out soft moans and gasps, she watched all the expressions run across his face as he found a good steady pace. His mouth hung half open as he rocked back and forth, his length pushing deep inside before sliding out to the tip. She felt the bed rocking a bit as his thrusts became more frantic. His hips snapped to hers roughly, unsteady. She knew he was getting close.

He lowered himself from his elbows, wrapping his arms behind her back as he buried his face into the crook of her neck. She gripped onto him tightly as he rammed into her forcefully. He was gasping, moaning in her ear. "I'm close… I'm about to…" He whimpered a bit as he slowed down, looking over her face. "Should I pull out?"

Natalie looked at him through half lidded eyes, and part of her knew it was a bad idea, but the other half spoke before she could even think. "Inside me…" She moaned out, feeling him throbbing at her entrance.

He nodded slowly, a bit unsure, but it didn't take him long to go back to his previous pace. He thrusted quickly, more shallow. He let out a cry, moaning as he gripped his arms around her tightly. He pushed in deep, her legs wrapping tightly around him as he released himself inside her. She felt the hot liquid fill her up, moaning along with him as her fingers pushed into his hair, tugging gently. He gave a final thrust, stilling himself as he leaned heavily against her. "God… that was good…" He said as he kissed against her neck.

"Yea… Amazing…" Natalie felt his head nod in agreement. She felt herself beginning to drift off, her hand gently rubbing on Maccready's back as he stayed resting against her, his softening length still resting inside of her. She sighed heavily, her eyes closing as she began to sleep. She saw Jeff in her dreams, he was making love to her much in the same way Maccready just had. She looked up over his face, her hand resting against his cheek. "I love you…"


	19. Chapter 18: Addicted

Sorry I haven't posted in two weeks... Or longer, I'm not entirely sure. This chapter is a bit jumbled, but I feel like I spaced everything out equally to where it's not confusing. I'm flipping back and forth between canon and non-canon throughout this whole story, I just don't want it to feel repetitive or like a walkthrough with emotional narrative tagged along. Let me know how you think things are going? Any improvements I can make? Also, thanks so much for the support and feedback! It warms my heart to know you guys are genuinely interested in my lil' ol' story!

Chapter 18: Addicted

For most of the night Natalie slept well, but at some point her sweet dream about Jeff turned into something nightmarish. In her dream she and Jeff were sitting on a bench in the park, talking about something from their night out at the cinema. Out of nowhere she felt something grab her hair and shove her forward, her face slamming into the ground. When she looked up she saw Jared, syringes in hand, with a threatening grin on his face. When she tried to fight back her arms felt too heavy to move and he would begin to stick her with needles, laughing that horrible blood-curdling laugh. Everything in her dream would begin to morph into the nightmare highs she would get from the drugs before. As time passed on in her dream the visions would get worse. When she would wake up everything felt like a blur between a dream and reality. Eventually she got up, trying to find something to keep her busy. She left Maccready, not wanting to wake him from his peaceful sleep.

Natalie was sitting at the edge of the water, her vault suit in hand, taking a break from all the scrubbing to think things over. Her headache was killing her, not to mention a slight nausea that sat at the back of her throat. She sighed, grabbing some water in her hand and rubbing it across her forehead. She was tired and sore from everything, and irritated that the grime wasn't willing to wash out of the suit. She thought the sex would help her get her mind off everything that happened the past couple of days, but it only really helped in the moment. There were still problems, despite the night they shared… despite the fact that she was able to get a bit closer to Maccready.

She jumped when a hand touched her shoulder. "Hey," it was Hancock. "You ok, sister?"

"Yea, I'm fine…" Her throat felt dry and she realized she had a cold sweat across the back of her neck and forehead.

"You didn't answer when I tried to get your attention." He gave a small chuckled. "A lot on your mind?"

"Something like that…" She closed her eyes tight, her headache throbbing.

"You sure you're ok? No offense but… You kind of look like hell…" The place where his brows would be furrowed in concern.

Natalie looked down at her vault suit, a hazy feeling in her brain. She felt like she was going to puke. Maybe it was just a migraine? She never had those before…

Hancock sat next to her, looking over her face for a moment. "You got a fever?" He asked as he reached a hand out to her. She moved away slowly. Something was making her feel anxious, her heart was racing in her chest and her breathing feeling unsteady. Hancock seemed to notice her panic because he pulled back slowly, cautiously. "Hey, just relax." His voice changed to a soothing tone and his expression changed from that of confusion to sudden understanding.

Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt as if something were crawling over her skin. "Fuck, fuck…" She scooted away from him in panic.

"Hey, sunshine. Just try to stay calm. I'm gonna give you something to help." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a syringe.

Natalie went wide eyed, her heart racing even more as she watched him uncap the needle. "No, no!" She pulled her arms up defensively, clenching her vault suit to her chest. "Don't touch me!" She leaned away from Hancock. His worried expression was making her even more nervous.

"Look, Natalie. You're going through withdrawals. I've seen this happen before and if we don't do something it'll just get worse. Do you know what kind of stuff they had you on?" He kept the syringe away from her.

She shook her head, looking down at the vault suit. Her headache was making it hard to focus. "They m-mixed a lot of stuff… Med-x… Psycho… Buffout." She rubbed her eyes again, as if to try and rub the pain away.

"Let me help you." He reached the syringe out next to her. She flinched at first, her memories flashing back to her days being held prisoner. She tried to relax and focus. She didn't think Hancock would hurt her but she couldn't fight the feeling of panic in her chest.

She bit her tongue, thinking it over for a moment. "Ok, just hurry…" She felt her heart speeding again as he prepared the needle. She held her breath, turning her head in the opposite direction as she felt the cool metal pierce her arm.

"There, there…" Hancock tried to soothe her, patting her back gently as she calmed her breathing. "I'm going to get Nate… Wait here, don't move." Natalie nodded slowly in response, feeling the sensation of the chemicals beginning to kick in. Her heart steadied and her mind began to clear, the anxiety dissipating.

Nate felt a hand shaking him harshly. His stomach churned as he sat up quickly in a panic. "Nate!" Preston tried to get his attention, Hancock standing next to him. "Nate, wake up!"

"Wh-what is it?" Nate rubbed the back of his head, his back feeling sore from sleeping on the couch.

"Natalie is having withdrawals." Hancock informed him. "I gave her some stuff to help for now but I think we need to get her to a doctor soon." His expression was serious.

"A doctor?" He felt lightheaded, a dull throbbing at his temples as he felt his hangover creep over him. "The only one I know is back in Diamond City."

"I don't know if she'd be ok to make the trip in one day… She's looking bad. If I had enough chems I could help hold it off…" Hancock rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "You can ask the Brotherhood?" He suggested.

"The Brotherhood of Steel?" Preston asked, confused.

"Yea, Nate's joined up with them." Hancock replied. Preston's expression seemed to drop in disappointment. "What do you think?"

Nate stood slowly. "Yea, we'll find out. Where is she?" He followed Hancock as they walked out. Preston trailed behind them.

She was sitting motionless near the water, her vault suit in a small pile next to her. Nate leaned down, meeting her eyes. She flinched away momentarily, but seemed to realize it was him after a moment. "Hey, Nat." He spoke softly. "How do you feel?"

"Sleepy." She said with a lazy smile. "Hungry, too… I could eat a whole plate of… spaghetti…" She leaned over, letting her head rest on Nate's shoulder.

He ran his hand over her forehead, she was burning up. "We're gonna get you a doctor to help get you clean." He turned up towards Hancock. "Can you help keep an eye on her? I don't really know how to handle these things." Nate admitted. He never knew anybody that got involved in drugs. Alcohol, yes, but drugs were forbidden. Especially for military figures.

Hancock nodded. "Sure thing. What's important right now is we keep her hydrated. If she's able to eat that'll help too."

"I don't have spaghetti, but I can get some noodle soup packed up for you guys." Preston informed. "I'll get you some water too."

"Thanks, Preston."

Natalie must have drifted off to sleep because her body leaned weakly against Nate. Nate's hangover seemed to subside only slightly as he focused on carrying Natalie back to his house. Hancock went to look for Maccready, to let him know they were going to leave sooner than planned.

Nate settled Natalie on the couch, her head resting back easily. She mumbled something in her sleep but Nate couldn't understand it. Eventually her eyes slowly fluttered open. She stared at the ceiling for a moment before going into a half-lidded gaze. Nate didn't say anything, just watched to see what she was going to do or say.

Her mouth opened to say something, but closed momentarily as her expression began to sadden. "Dad?" She asked with a hoarse voice.

Nate looked at her with a shocked expression. She never called him that before, even during moments of mental instability. He felt something grip in his chest. "No, Natalie. It's Nate." He whispered softly to her.

"I missed you…" Her eyes began to pour tears. "I missed you so much. I can't do this anymore." She gasped, trying to hold back her tears as she used her palms to wipe away the ones that escaped. "I can't stay here… Am I going with you? Just take me home…"

"No, Natalie. Look at me, it's Nate. I'm not…" He swallowed back the lump in his throat. "I'm not your father."

She reached a hand up to his face, a confused look on her face. "Are you taking me home, dad?" Her voice cracked a bit.

Nate bit his lip, unsure of what to do. "Listen, Natalie… We've got to get you to a doctor… You're sick right now."

"Yea I don't feel good." She mumbled. "I feel sick…" She frowned, covering her face with her palms. "I just want to go home…"

Hancock walked in with the bag of things from Preston, Maccready right behind him with Natalie's backpack in hand. He looked over at Natalie with a shocked expression. "Is she alright?" He quickly rushed to her side. Nate scooted over a bit to allow him access next to her. "Natalie?" He moved his hand slowly towards her hair, cautiously pushing it away from her face.

"She's ok, but… I think she might be hallucinating…" Nate said with a solemn expression.

"That'll happen." Hancock cleared his throat as he watched her. "We should start heading out as soon as possible. I've seen situations like this turn to a shitstorm in a matter of hours, and I don't have strong enough chems to help her ease off…"

Maccready ran his hand over the back of hers, caressing it softly. "We're gonna get you help, Natalie…" Nate watched as her eyes looked over Maccready, her face softening a bit.

"Ok… I'll carry her." Nate stood up. Maccready moved away from her hesitantly, worry written all over his face. "Hancock, can you go to the bedroom, it's the last door on the left. I have my bag with the weapons in it."

Hancock nodded, quickly moving down the hallway.

"She's gonna be ok." Nate reassured Maccready as he pulled Natalie off the couch. He nodded slowly in response. He knew that she and he were growing close, but their relationship was obviously getting more serious than he realized.

Maccready was walking in front of Nate on the way to the police station, but he would constantly turn around to look over Natalie. At one point Nate caught his eyes and Maccready turned back quickly, lowering his head a bit as he walked. "What kind of stuff did they give you?" Nate asked Maccready.

"I don't even know. Some of it was just a mix of other drugs. Some things I had never heard of before. They always gave her the first dose, and usually overdid it." He slowed as he walked. "I'm surprised she survived throughout that. I thought for sure they were going to kill her with overdoses."

Nate breathed heavily, trying to calm his anger over the actions of the raiders. "What about you, are you feeling ok?"

He nodded. "I didn't get it half as bad as she did… not the drugs. Most of the time I was the punching bag." He swallowed hard. "The doses I did get gave me nightmares like I've never had before… The worst trips imaginable."

"Damn…" Hancock sighed. "Hopefully this stuff hasn't messed with her too much psychologically. Poor girl… No one deserves that kind of treatment."

Natalie shifted on Nate's back. He peeked over his shoulder to see she was beginning to wake up. "Hey, let's stop for a bit. She's waking."

They stopped in one of the buildings just short of the police station. Nate was careful to lean her against the wall, keeping her head at a comfortable angle. Natalie opened her eyes slowly, trying her best to keep them open as her head tilted forward.

"Hey, Natalie." Maccready was the first to greet her, a soft smile across his face.

"Hey," She smiled back at him. "Where are we?" She looked around, confused.

"On the way to the police station." Nate informed her. "How are you feeling?"

"Like shit…" She frowned, her eyes lowering to the ground momentarily.

Hancock gave a small chuckled. "Did that Med-x help any?"

"A little bit… Thanks, Hancock." She smiled at him. "Do we have any food, I'm starving." She rubbed her stomach as it growled.

Hancock pulled the backpack off his shoulder. "Check the stash," He smirked at her as he unzipped the bag.

"Someone should keep lookout, this area isn't that safe." Nate said as he looked around. Mostly it was ferals in the area, but every now and then he heard gunfire, which led him to believe raiders might be trying to move into the area.

"If you've got a sniper rifle I could borrow." Maccready offered.

"I do, actually." Nate remembered they had managed to find his rifle in the armory at the corvega plant. "Hancock, there should be a weapon in there with the letters R-J-M carved into the wood."

"R-J-M?" Hancock looked at Nate questioningly. "What's that mean?" Nate simply shrugged

Maccready had the biggest look of excitement on his face, like a kid during Christmas. "My rifle! You got it back?" Hancock handed the rifle to him as he looked over it in amazement. "Man, Nate… This really means a lot to me. I owe you." He made his way to the roof, the rifle in his hand.

"Boys and their toys, huh?" Natalie joked.

"Hey, never step between a man and his gun." Nate said with mock seriousness. "Eat up, we've got plenty of food."

"Yes, sir." She gave a joking salute. Natalie seemed to enjoy the soup, slurping it messily as she fit as much as she could in her mouth.

"Careful, sunshine. Don't overdo it." Hancock cautioned.

She slowed down, trying to pace herself. "Hey, thanks again for helping me…" She said after a moment.

"Don't mention it." He said with a small hand wave. "I'd hate to see anything bad happen to you." He cleared his throat. "Especially by the hands of some asshole raiders."

"Can I ask you something?" Nate leaned towards Hancock, as if to tell a secret. "Do you usually kill people whenever you have newcomers in Goodneighbor?"

Hancock gave a laugh in surprise. "God, no. Finn was just pushin' it. You see, if people see you in power for too long they think they can walk over you. Finn just wanted to use people. If there's one thing I hate more than raider's, it's manipulative fucks like him." He ended the sentence with a growl.

Natalie swallowed her food hard, coughing a bit. "I'll make sure to not get on your bad side…" She said half-joking.

Nate grabbed a water bottle and handed it over to Natalie. "So how'd you end up becoming the mayor of Goodneighbor?" Nate asked with a perked brow.

"Some ass named Vic ran the town for I don't know how long before me. Guy was scum, used drifters like us as his own personal piggy bank." He pulled out his knife, fiddling with it as he spoke. "He had this goon squad he'd used to keep people in line… and every so often he'd let them off the leash, go blow off some steam on the populace at large." He sighed. "Folks with homes could lock their doors, but us drifters… we got it bad.

"There was one night this drifter said something to them. They cracked him open like a can of cram on the pavement… and we all just stood there… did _nothing_ …"

"There wasn't someone who could help?" Natalie asked during his pause.

"Who knows, maybe...? Honestly, we were all so terrified, we couldn't bring ourselves to move until it was over, let alone get help. I felt like less than nothing." He looked at Natalie with a solemn stare. "Afterwards, I got so high that I blacked out completely. When I finally came to, I was on the floor of the Old State House. Right in front of the clothes of John Hancock." He gave a small chuckle. "John Hancock, first American hoodlum and defender of the People." He stuck the blade back in it's sheath. "I might've still been high, but those clothes spoke to me, told me what I needed to do. I smashed the case, put them on, and started a new life. As Hancock… After that I went clean for a bit, got organized, convinced Kleo to loan me some hardware. Got a crew of drifters together and headed out into the ruins, started training. Next time Vic's boys went on their tear, we'd be ready for 'em."

Nate looked suspiciously at Hancock for a moment. "You don't actually think the clothes spoke to you, do you?"

"Nah, I just felt, you know, a connection. It seemed like he and I were dealing with the same shit- serious oppression. So, the night of we all got loaded, let Vic's boys get good and hammered, and burst from the windows and rooftops where we'd been hiding. They never even saw it coming. We didn't have to fire a shot. Didn't have to, but we sure fucking did. Once we'd mopped up, we strolled right into Vic's quarters in the State House, wrapped a rope around his neck, and threw him off the balcony. And there I am, gun in hand, draped in Hancock's duds." He put his hand up, painting a mental image of the crowd. "Looking at all the people of Goodneighbor assembled below. I had to say something. That first time I said them it didn't even feel like my words." He deepened his voice as he spoke the next words. "'Of the People, for the People.'" He gave a small chuckle. "Was my inaugural address. I became Mayor Hancock of Goodneighbor that day. And from then on, I vowed I'd never stand by and watch. Ever again."

"You fought so hard to become Mayor… Why did you decide to leave?" Nate asked with genuine curiosity.

"I ain't really the ponderous type. When instinct takes hold, I listen. This time around, instinct said I should join up with you guys. Seems it was a good one." He smiled at them softly. "Not to mention I wanted to punch that bastard Jared's teeth in. But Natalie beat me to that." He laughed again. "Anyways… Don't get the wrong idea about me. I don't want to cause harm to those that don't deserve it. But I've got the feeling that we're all on the same page here."

After Natalie finished her bowl of soup she looked up at Nate. "I think I'm good to walk now."

Nate looked at Hancock questioningly. He gave a small nod. "If you start feeling weak or tired let us know." Nate said. He made his way up the stair to get Maccready.

"Are you still feeling anxious?" Hancock asked as they packed up everything to head out.

"A little bit… Anything to help with that?" She asked.

Hancock shrugged a bit. "I don't think we should give you a full dose of chems just for the jitters. We can just… I don't know, talk about things to keep you focused on other stuff…?"

"Like what?" She questioned.

"I've got something!" Maccready jumped into the conversation as he stepped down the stairs. "Did you ever ride a motorcycle?"

Natalie remembered all the rides with Jeff. A huge smile crossed her lips. "Yea, I did. I never drove one, but it was fun as hell to ride." She laughed a bit. "I loved when it was sunny, feeling the cool wind on me. Sometimes Jeff would go out where there were no cars and he'd go really fast. Mostly it scared me, but it was exciting."

"Sounds fun." Maccready said. "Oh, I've got another question!" They continued the walk with an array of questions at hand. Nate even got involved with answering some of the questions. Hancock and Maccready listened like kids hearing some sort of fairytale story.

Natalie felt relieved to finally be back at the Police station. Her body was feeling particularly sore. Danse approached the group, giving them a somewhat confused look. "It's good to see you back, we didn't expect you until tomorrow."

"Natalie needs medical attention. Would someone aboard your aircraft be able to help?" Nate asked anxiously.

"Certainly. Are all four of you coming aboard?" He gave a particularly long glance at Hancock.

"Sure are." Hancock said with a smug grin.

Danse seemed annoyed but didn't argue with the decision. "The vertibird is on the roof, follow me."

Haylen and Rhys joined them as they headed towards the roof. Rhys, obviously displeased at Hancock's presence mumbled "Why is this _freak_ here?"

Without skipping a beat, Hancock retorted with "Watch your mouth, _friend_. It's gonna get you in trouble."

Natalie did her best to hold back a giggle at the look of shock on Rhys' face. "Sir, I hardly believe Elder Maxson would appro-"

"We'll let him handle it when we get to the Prydwen." Danse huffed out as he opened the door to the roof. "Scribe Haylen, is everything ready to go?"

"Yes, sir. I've already sent a message letting the Prydwen know we'll be arriving shortly." She said informatively.

They boarded the vertibird, Maccready hardly containing his excitement. "I've always wanted to fly in one of these." He helped pull Natalie up the step.

Nate looked over Natalie for a moment as they sat. "Are you gonna be ok? You're not scared of heights, are you?"

"No, I used to ride these with my father sometimes. When our family would have to go on base. Mostly when I was younger, though." She actually felt pretty excited to be on one of these. It helped her ignore the anxiety that she felt from the withdrawal.

"Military blood, huh?" Danse asked over his shoulder. He gripped onto the machine gun as the plane began to shake, the blades spinning as it lifted off. "You would be an excellent addition to our team. Do you have any combat training?"

"Oh, no… I mean… I have some, but I just recently… I don't think I'd be good." Natalie stumbled over her words.

"Nonsense." Danse protested. "Scribe Haylen is a perfect example of someone who has advanced quickly in the brotherhood."

"Paladin Danse was actually the one who sponsored me." Haylen beamed with pride. "You shouldn't sell yourself short."

Natalie didn't say anything, not really focused on the offer. She just turned her gaze down towards the ocean water. It looked peaceful, compared to all the other things throughout the Commonwealth. If there were any dangers below the surface, they were well hidden.

"Almost makes you forget all the sh-stuff that's out there…" Maccready commented as he watched the waters himself.

They approached the airship, it looked like a giant metal blimp, the fact that it was able to keep in the air was amazing. They pilot spoke over the headset to inform them that they were about to dock. As the ship slowly approached the loading bay there was the sound of something latching on. The vertibird shook for a moment as the blades slowed to a stop and retracted in.

"We will meet Elder Maxson on the command deck before you meet with our medics." Danse informed Nate. He turned to Natalie, looking over her momentarily. "How serious are your injuries?"

"Withdrawals… It's not a physical injury." Natalie said. She noticed a slight look of disgust that Danse made and used all her willpower to bite her tongue. She was starting to feel nauseous again, and her headache was returning with a vengeance.

As they made their way to the command deck people would stop and stare, often making comments about the 'freak show' Paladin Danse was escorting. When Danse shot them glares, however, they quickly shut their mouths and returned to their work. As they stepped into the room a man with a large coat, presumably Elder Maxson, was beginning a speech.

"Brothers and sisters, the road behind has been long and fraught with difficulty…" He spoke with authority, a deep commanding voice that somewhat reminded Natalie of her father. Danse stood at attention, glancing at the group to make sure they followed suit as Maxson spoke.

Natalie didn't pay attention at all. Not one bit. She was too busy trying to focus on something that wasn't making her dizzy. Her head was beginning to throb again and her stomach churned. It felt like Maxson was taking forever, saying something about the Commonwealth being in danger… About the Institute and it's synths. Everyone, even Hancock, stood at attention as he continued on, every now and then Maxson was clenching a fist and slamming it into his own palm for added affect. She just wished he'd hurry so she could get to the doctor.

Natalie looked to the floorboards for a moment, her head still pounding as she focused on not spilling her stomach contents. Her vision blurred a bit and she squeezed her eyes shut, facing her head down as she tried to ignore her stomach swirling around. Just as the Elder was ending his speech she looked up quickly, but everything began to black out in the corners. She felt herself collapse, everything going numb.


	20. Chapter 19: Unsteady

Chapter 19: Unsteady

Natalie woke up in a dark room. Immediately, she felt panic set in. She stood up quickly, almost toppling over as she grew lightheaded. She felt something against her arm, and as she grabbed it she realized she was connected to an IV. Frantically, she pulled the IV, her arm dripping blood as she used whatever loose material that was covering her body to stop the bleeding.

As her eyes adjusted to the dark she realized she was in some sort of hospital. But there was no way she could be in a hospital… Right? What was going on? Everything looked so clean and new… There was no way she was in the Commonwealth again. "Nate?" She whispered softly. "Robert?" She didn't hear anything. She grabbed a scalpel from a surgical tray, holding it firmly as she mentally prepared herself for what she might face. She held her breath as she approached the door, twisting the handle quietly.

It clicked open, her hand slowly pulling it as to not make any noise. She peeked out, not seeing anyone down the hallway. Everything looked as if it were made with metal. She stepped slowly, feeling goosebumps crawl over her body as a chill hit her back. She realized she was only wearing her underwear, leaving the majority of her back exposed under the home made hospital gown. Quickly, she grabbed the material of the makeshift hospital gown and wrapped it closed, managing to tie it shut with the excess string. She walked through the hallways, making sure no one was around. It seemed as if the place was abandoned.

Natalie heard footsteps coming and quickly ducked into what appeared to be a shower room. She tried to remember the last things that happened. Nate had been carrying her to the police station? Why were they going to the police station? Maybe it had been overrun… Maybe she had been kidnapped again?

The footsteps came closer to the doorway of the shower room. She tiptoed across the floor, hiding behind one of the shower curtains. She held onto the scalpel, holding her breath as she heard the footsteps.

"What do you think of the new members?" A voice spoke casually.

"What do I think?" A second voice scoffed. "It's a load of bullshit. Now a days they'll let anyone join the brotherhood. Back in D.C. you were lucky to get in, even if you had a pure bloodline. How do we know we can even trust them?"

"I think that's why Maxson is keeping them for questioning. He's even got one in the medical wing." Were they talking about her? The first voice went to a whispered tone. "Did you see that one?"

"Oh, yea. She's got nice legs. Thin, slender. Looks like a swimsuit model from those old war mags. That vault suit leaves little to the imagination."

Natalie shifted a bit, who the hell could they be talking about? There was no way it was her.

"I just don't get why they're wasting our medical supplies on some strung out junkie." The first voice huffed.

"What's worse is she might not even join the brotherhood… We should just-"

"Gentlemen." A deep voice interrupted.

"Paladin Danse." They both responded, the sound of heels clicking together simultaneous. Natalie remembered Danse from the police station. Wherever she was, it was most likely safe. However, she felt too anxious to come out from behind the curtain after the conversation the two men were having.

"How are you doing tonight, Initiates?" Danse asked with a stale tone.

"Excellent, sir. And you?" Responded the first.

He didn't respond immediately, simply stepped around the room. "I'm doing great, but if I may make a suggestion." The sound of something dropping on the floor echoed slightly in the shower room. "Whenever you have a problem, it is best to bring it to the attention of a commanding officer. Gossip is not appreciated."

The men shuffled a bit, sounding as if they were making their way out the room. "Y-yes sir." The second voice said a bit shakily. "We meant no disrespect."

"Well, I find it very disrespectful to question the decisions of a higher ranking officer." His tone somehow managed to get deeper. "Now, I'm sure Captain Kells has plenty of assignments for you."

The pair of feet scrambled out the room. Natalie took the opportunity to peek behind the curtain, seeing Danse reach through is bag that was on the floor. He looked in the mirror that stretched across the sinks. Leaning over one sink, he stared at his reflection for a moment, sighing heavily. He looked tired. It was strange to see him out of his power armor, he was a bit shorter than Natalie imagined. She leaned back behind the curtain again, hoping he might just be washing up before heading to bed. She heard his footsteps move somewhere to the right of the room, the sound of a curtain being pulled back. He cut the water on. Natalie peeked out again, seeing him from behind as he appeared to unzip his suit. She leaned back, staring up at the ceiling as the steam began to pool into the room.

She waited for the sound of the curtain moving again before she peeked out again. When she saw he wasn't standing in the open area of the shower room she quickly stepped out, heading straight for the door. Then she saw it… Her reflection. She almost thought it was another person, but when she froze, so did the image. She looked over her face. A yellowing bruise covered her right cheek. Her eyes looked tired. A small scar ran across her lip, healing scratches covered the left side of her chin. She ran her hands over her face, her skin felt relatively smooth, aside from the injuries.

She pulled open her hospital gown, pulling it off her body. Dark bruises covered her ribs. A knotted scar was on her abdomen from where she had been shot by Kellogg. She ran her fingers over the bruises on her ribs, for the most part it didn't hurt. They were healing. She noticed scars that she couldn't even remember getting, most likely from her time being held by Jared.

She frowned a bit, running her hand over her hip. She was getting thinner being out in the Commonwealth. Something she knew would happen, but was hoping it wouldn't. Natalie looked over her legs, thinking of what the man had said. Her legs were definitely getting more muscle on them, from all the walking, running, and jumping. If she weren't getting so thin perhaps they would get shapelier. She heard the water cut off, quickly covering herself up and tying the gown securely over her body.

Not wanting Danse to step out in front of her, she quickly shouted "Stop! Don't come out!" She heard the curtain move slightly, he was probably looking to see who it was.

"What are you doing in here?" He asked with a slight angry tone.

"I didn't know where I was, I got scared... I thought I was taken again…" She covered her face, even though she was turned the opposite direction and he was behind the curtain. "I heard footsteps and I was trying to hide…" Her cheeks still burned with embarrassment.

"You weren't taken, Nate brought you here." He replied sternly. "Wait in the hallway, I'm going to get dressed."

"Yes, sir." She replied and quickly went out in the hall. She realized she was still holding the scalpel and set it on top of a metal box that had been left in the hallway. She felt anxious waiting for him to get ready. She tapped her foot on the ground, her bare heel making a small patting sound against the metal flooring.

When Danse stepped outside, he seemed a bit annoyed but just sighed. "You shouldn't have gotten out of your bed. You need to rest." He spoke in a chastising tone.

"I'm sorry…" Natalie looked at her feet, feeling a bit ashamed at how hasty she acted. "Where are we?"

"The Prydwen. Do you remember anything before you arrived here?" He asked as he adjusted his bag on his shoulder.

She shook her head. "I just remember heading to the Police Station. The rest is kind of a blur."

"Nate brought you here to get you medical help. For your drug addictions." He looked her in the eye and she could see that slight look of disgust again.

She bit into her lip, trying to decide if she should say anything. "I'm not some druggie," She spat the words out, "I was fucking kidnapped. They gave me those chems against my will. They would tie me down…" She stopped herself, realizing she was getting louder. "You shouldn't judge people before you know them."

His brows were furrowed as if he were deeply contemplating something. "I didn't say anything." He seemed even more agitated.

"Yea, but I see that face you make." She huffed. His eyes looked to the side for a moment before meeting hers again. He began to walk away, not saying anything. She quickly followed after him. "Where are you going?"

"Back to my bunk. You should return to the medical room."

"Where's Nate? And Maccready…" She paused a moment. "Is Hancock here too?" When he didn't reply she figured it was because she had begun to raise her voice with him earlier. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get so… angry."

"It's fine." He said in a harsh tone. "It's part of the process to get you clean. Anger, depression… Be prepared for a whole mix of emotions." His expression softened a bit as he stopped walking, looking at her arm where the IV had been. "Here, let me wrap that up."

"Oh, ok…" She stepped close to him, extending her arm.

He took some gauze from his bag, wrapping it tightly in place before securing it. He sighed, zipping his bag back up "Follow me, I'll take you to the others. But you'll have to return to the medical wing after you visit." She nodded her head in agreement.

They walked down the hallway, leading to some sort of cafeteria area. Nate was speaking to Maccready, but turned as Hancock made a look of slight surprise at Natalie walking in. "Well, look who it is?" Hancock grinned at her.

"What?" Maccready asked as he and Nate turned to looked at her. "Nat?" He stood up quickly, walking over to her. "Are you ok? How do you feel?"

"I'm fine." She smiled softly to them.

Nate walked up to her, giving her a firm hug. "It's good to see you up an about."

"So does this mean she's gonna be good to go?" Maccready asked Danse.

"Unfortunately, no. This process will take anywhere from three days to a week. It just depends on how long it takes her blood to filter the chems out." He replied. "Whatever they gave her was really strong. The medicine won't work as fast as it usually does."

"A week?" Nate asked, helping Natalie steady herself on her feet. "Does she have to remain on base during this time?"

"No. But she will need to check in daily for testing." His expression grew more serious. "I feel it is important to inform you that we must keep any drug use to a minimum around her. If she happens to backtrack, it could ruin the entire process." He paused a moment, keeping an intense glare at Hancock. "I've seen addictions like this consume people. It is vital we follow procedure. Understood?" He looked over the group.

Hancock gave a slight sigh of disappointment. "Whatever it takes to get you clean, sunshine." He said with a small smile.

"Thank you so much, Paladin." Nate said with an extended hand.

"It is the least we can do, Knight." He shook Nate's hand with a smile of his own.

"Knight?" Natalie questioned with a small scoff.

"Knight Nathan Graham of the Brotherhood of Steel." He said with a sideways smile, giving a playful salute.

"Graham?" Natalie's eyebrows perked up in surprise. "Wait, that's your last name?"

"Uh, yes…?" Nate said with an awkward smile.

"Oh, it's just that…" She gave a small laugh. "That's my last name too…"

Nate laughed to himself a bit. "Strange world, huh?"

"Yea…" Natalie turned to face Danse. "I should offer my thanks as well…" She extended her hand.

Danse took it softly, shaking lightly. "Yes ma'am. As you know, the Brotherhood is open to recruit you as well." He gave her a smile.

Maccready made a soft 'hmph', stepping a bit closer to her as he straightened his stance. Natalie shot him a look before turning to Danse. "I'll need time to think it over."

"Of course. Considering the stress you're under, take all the time you need. Just make sure you return to the medical room as soon as possible. I'll inform the Scribe on duty that you'll be there shortly." He placed his arm across his chest, his fist slightly pounding it as he did so. "Ad victorium."

Nate mimicked the action. "Ad victorium."

When he walked away Natalie smirked at Nate. "What was that all about? This taking you back to your soldier days?"

"A bit." Nate said, smirking back at her.

Natalie felt herself getting woozy, rubbing her hand across her face as the strange foggy feeling began to take over. "I guess I should go back to the room now... I'm starting to feel dizzy…"

"Here, I'll walk with you." Maccready took her arm gently, helping her steady herself as they walked. They stepped down the hallway at a slow pace, Maccready made sure they took their time. "Are you really thinking of joining the brotherhood?"

Natalie bit her lip in thought. "I'm not sure…" She left it at that. She didn't know much about the brotherhood. Although she didn't like how prejudice they were, maybe she would be able to help more people out. After she helps Nate find Shaun, she would need something to keep her busy. Although there was also the Minutemen… She shook her head lightly, the fogginess making it hard to think clearly.

They reached the room she had been staying in, a scribe was setting up another IV line. He turned to greet her, pulling the sheets back on the bed so she could lay down. Maccready brought her to the bed, releasing her arm as she sat on the edge. As the scribe prepared to place the IV she grabbed Maccready's hand tightly. "Hey, Robert…" She still felt a bit strange saying his first name. "Can you stay with me for a little while?"

He placed his hand over hers, sitting at the edge of the bed. "Yea." He gave her a warm smile. The scribe informed them that he would be checking in frequently, then left them alone. Natalie breathed heavily while she lay back. Maccready shook his foot a bit, almost as if he were nervous. She watched as he took a deep breath, obviously mentally preparing himself to say something. "Natalie…" He said after a moment.

Her eyes met his, he had a nervous expression. "Yea…?" She replied softly, pulling herself up to a sitting position on the bed.

"The other night… Did you… Did you like it?" His face was turning red. She felt a blush crawl up her own cheeks. "It's ok if you didn't… I just… uh…" he cleared his throat. "I thought since you weren't there when I woke up… I thought maybe… Listen, you can tell me. If you want to act like nothing happened. We can-"

"Relax, Robert." She gave him a small smile, her cheeks burning as she spoke. "I liked it… I really liked it, actually… I've never… experienced that…" She covered her mouth a bit to cover her grin.

He smiled at her proudly. "Well, there's more where that came from." He smirked at her, no trace of his previous nervousness in his voice.

She felt her face grow even hotter. "I still haven't shown you all my moves." She licked over her lips, trying to make it as sexy as possible.

She watched his eyes move momentarily to her lips. He leaned in slowly, his mouth gently pressing against hers. It was like fire as he pushed deeper, putting a hand behind her head to further the kiss. He pulled back slowly, his mouth placing kisses along her jaw, then to her neck.

She kept her eyes closed, focused on the feeling of his tongue on her neck. His lips giving soft, sucking sensations as she tilted her head back to expose more of her neck, he pulled at the gown to expose her shoulder. She ran her fingers through his hair, tugging gently and he let out a breathy moan. She pulled his head back, bringing his mouth to hers again as she ran her tongue along his. She felt a soft mewl escape her throat as he ran a hand gently down her neck. She pulled his head back, exposing his throat. Her tongue slid wetly down his neck and he let out another deep moan.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. "Oh, sh-" She pulled her hands away quickly, adjusting her gown as Maccready attempted to sit in a position that wasn't exposing him so much. "Uh, c-come in." She tried to speak clearly, her voice a bit shaky.

"I hope I'm not bothering you, ma'am." A man with short grey hair poked his head in through the door. "I'm Knight Captain Cade, chief medical officer." He gave them a small nod and cleared his throat as he stepped into the room. "Scribe Landon informed me that you were awake and I figured this would be an excellent time to get a urine sample."

"A what?" Natalie asked, her heart still racing from her and Maccready's previous closeness.

"Urine sample." He stepped over to her, handing a small cup with a lid in a plastic bag. "I'm hoping it will help to single out what drugs are most affecting you. We've already got a blood sample running and we'll find out the results tomorrow. I'll step out a moment and give you some privacy."

As Cade exited the room, Natalie looked at the small cup. Maccready rubbed the back of his neck. "Want me to step out?" He asked.

"No, but can you help me over to the toilet?" She laughed softly, looking at the small metal structure that sat openly in the corner of the room.

Nate watched as Natalie fell over, reaching a hand out to catch her. Her knees hit the ground and he managed to grab her shoulders before she fell completely over. Elder Maxson stopped his speech, ordering the other Brotherhood members to make their leave. "Scribe Landon, get Knight Captain Cade." He ordered with a demanding voice. "What is going on? Is she ill?"

"Withdrawal." Danse said with a bit of a snarl in his voice.

"Withdrawal?" Maxson question, his brows furrowing deeper.

"Some raiders got to her…" Nate brought his hand to her forehead. "She's burning up."

"Is she gonna be ok?" Maccready asked as he watched her worriedly.

"Do not be distraught, Cade is more than equipped to handle these situations." Maxson spoke with certainty.

"Where is she?" Cade asked as he entered the Command Deck. "Scribes, help me carry her to the medical room." He ordered as he quickly checked her pulse. He turned to Nate. "What's her emergency?"

"Withdrawal… Something strong, we don't know what." Nate looked over her with a worried expression. "Raiders were mixing drugs and testing them on her."

Cade nodded his head. "We'll get her taken care of."

The trio began to follow her, but Maxson stopped them. "It's best to not overcrowd the room." He cleared his throat. "You can make your way to the mess hall while you wait for her. We'll provide meals and a place to stay for the night." He looked suspiciously over the ghoul and mercenary. "Nate, may I speak with you before you leave?"

Nate nodded slowly, still trying to calm down from the excitement that just occurred. "Elder Maxson, sir. It's an honor to meet you."

He responded with a slight bow. "I assure you that we will return her to proper health." He paused a moment, his brows relaxing into a somewhat solemn expression. "I care about them, you know. The people of the Commonwealth."

"Care about them? Judging by your speech, it sounds like you were preparing for war." Nate said with a bit of a scoff.

His previous expression returned. "The Brotherhood is here to prevent a war by starting one of our own. The difference is our war won't reduce civilization to ashes."

Nate sighed a bit. He knew the brotherhood meant well. Maybe going to war with the Institute wasn't such a bad thing? After all the crazy things that happened… It was to protect the innocent, after all. "Don't worry, I'm convinced."

"Paladin Danse's reports were quite clear regarding your feelings towards the Brotherhood…" He started walking towards the large window overlooking the commonwealth, Nate following shortly behind. "… and he concludes that you'd be an asset to us. Seeing as he's one of my most respected field officers, you couldn't get a better recommendation." He stopped, turning to face Nate with a straight stance, his shoulder's pulled back. "Therefore, from this moment forward I am granting you the rank of Knight and, befitting your title, we're granting you a suit of power armor to protect you on the field of battle. Wear it with pride."

Nate felt a bit shocked, to he never expected the Brotherhood to make such a generous offer, especially to an outsider. "Thank you, I'll do my best to live up to it."

"I'm certain that you will." The Elder's expression softened a bit at Nate's response. "In any event, once you're finished becoming familiar with the Prydwen and my staff, report to the Flight Deck for your new orders. Welcome aboard the Prydwen, soldier," He placed a fist over his heart, giving a slight bow, "Make us proud."

Nate mimicked the action, feeling a familiarity rush over him. It certainly felt good to be part of a team, like he was back in the army again. Although he had retired to be with Nora and Shaun, after Shaun was born, he enjoyed his time in the military. The way his brothers in arms would stand up for each other. He smiled to himself. _Not to mention the power armor is a huge plus_.

Nate met back with Hancock and Maccready, who were managing to garner quite a few strange stares from other Brotherhood members. Hancock was hungrily chewing on some steak while Maccready slowly picked at his food.

Hancock paused from his eating. "So what'd the Elder have to say? I'm sure he's got plenty of complaints about us…" He gave a slight nod to Maccready's direction.

"No, he didn't even mention it… I did, however get a new suit of power armor." Nate smirked at the incredulous stare Maccready gave him.

"They just gave it to you, just like that?" Hancock asked with a suspicious look.

"Well, they uh… Promoted me to Knight." Nate said hesitantly, knowing Hancock would be opposed to it.

"You're getting yourself in pretty deep." He said, but just shrugged. "It's your choice, though. No matter what I'll have your back. As long as we're helping people."

"Well, I can't say the same for me." Maccready said with a slight joking tone.

"Oh, yea… You're only here for Natalie." Nate said with a playful smirk.

Maccready's face turned pink at the cheeks. "Well, she's basically my boss. I have to stay with her…" He said, quickly stuffing a particularly large piece of steak in his mouth.

"Yea, sure… I would totally caress my boss' face." Nate said with a slight roll of his eyes.

"If you want a hell of a raise, you could do much more than that." Hancock said with a laugh.

Maccready coughed, almost choking on the steak. His face began to turn bright red.

"Wait, did you…?" Nate asked, leaning in towards Maccready.

"Wh-what? No, we-uh… No, no…" He stuttered.

"Damn." Hancock let out another laugh. "I didn't realize you two were so _close._ "

"What, we're not that close. We just… People do that stuff all the time, it's no big deal." He rubbed the back of his neck.

Nate scoffed "Yea, but they usually don't stick around after unless they want it to be serious."

"No, no," Hancock said before Maccready could speak, "Haven't you heard of friends with benefits?"

Maccready rolled his eyes, "Come on, guys. Let's just drop this."

"Friends with benefits don't usually work out that well…" Nate said with a look of doubt.

"Are you speaking from experience?" Hancock ran his fingers along his chin in thought. "Because I don't think I've ever had a problem."

"Can we stop this conversation, now? Besides, like I said… it's not a big deal. She didn't even stay the whole night with me." Maccready looked down with a disappointed glance. "I think she might regret it, honestly…"

"Was it… bad?" Nate asked, feeling a bit strange to be questioning someone's sex life.

" _I_ liked it… She, ugh… seemed like she liked it." He sighed heavily. "I don't know, maybe I just rushed things."

"You could always talk to her about it?" Nate suggested.

"Yea, I guess so…" Maccready rubbed the back of his neck.

"Well, look who it is." Hancock flashed a grin in the direction behind Nate and Maccready.

They both turned around, Natalie walking up with Paladin Danse. She took a moment to speak with them, the Paladin excusing himself after a moment. Eventually, Natalie started to feel dizzy again and Maccready offered to escort her back.

Nate took a seat next to Hancock. Hancock watched Natalie and Maccready disappear down the hallway. "He's a good kid, you know… Even if he can be a little selfish."

"Selfish?" Nate asked. He hadn't spent enough time with Maccready to know him that well. "How so?"

"He's had a hard time trusting people… Always says this world is 'kill or be killed'." Hancock sighed a bit. "I get that, I really do… But not everyone is out for blood. Most people are just trying to survive."

Nate frowned at the statement. "I wonder how Natalie feels about that." He leaned an elbow on the table, looking down the hall. "If you would've seen her before… You wouldn't even believe how she survived this long." He gave a small laugh. "I was gonna leave her back in Sanctuary, with Preston and his group… She didn't want to stay, though. She wanted to help."

Hancock made a small grunt of approval. "Girl's got a heart of gold, you can definitely see that…" Nate saw him shrug from the corner of his eye. "Maybe Maccready will change his ways. Start fighting the good fight."

Nate sighed softly, thinking it over. There was so much going on in her life, he'd hate to see their blossoming relationship wither away due to Maccready's unwillingness to help others. Either way it would be up to Natalie, whether or not she wanted to stay. He just hoped if things didn't work out there wouldn't be too much heartache.


	21. Chapter 20: Rest Easy

Thought I'd post a mini chapter for Mother's Day. Hope you guys enjoy, just a bit of Nate/Nora fluff.

(Also, if any of you are interested I drew a picture of how I imagine Natalie. I'm not the best artist, but I find sometimes it helps to have an image with a character. post/144064957480/some-doodles-of-my-oc-natalie-and-an-attempt-at )

Chapter 20: Rest Easy

Nate watched as Nora looked over the house. She placed her hand along the walls, tracing the wood. Nate tapped his foot, a bit impatiently. "So, honey… What do you think?"

She looked back at him, her dark brown eyes softened as her brows turned into a look of uncertainty. "Well, I don't know… It is a quite above the amount we agreed on." She bit her lip in thought.

"The location, though, is great. Exactly what you wanted, a small neighborhood for Shaun to grow up in. The neighbors all seem great." Nate stepped to her, gently caressing her swollen belly. "It's a safe place, where we can all be together."

"It's just… how can we do this with me being out of work?" She sighed, rubbing her forehead softly. "I'm just worried, you know?"

"Don't be, Nora." Nate kissed her forehead. "We'll make it, I'm not going to mess this up."

She looked at him, worried. "It's not that I think you're going to mess this up… I'm just… worried…"

Nate paused to look over her face, smoothing a hand over her neck. "We haven't even gotten to the best part yet. Follow me." He led her down the hall, towards the last room on the right. "This would make an excellent nursery. It's got plenty of space. We can set the crib here," He motioned with his hands as she stood in the doorway, "and that new changing table you want, the wooden one, we can set it up here." He placed his hands on his hips, looking around the room. "I know you love it."

Nora crossed her arms, huffing lightly. "I do…" She gave in, smiling at him. He walked up to her, caressing her cheek as he gave her soft kisses on the lips. "I think we should get it…"

The real estate agent stepped in as they leaned for another kiss. "How's everything loo—oh I didn't mean to interrupt anything." They cleared their throat, laughing nervously. "Are there any questions I can answer?"

"Yea, when can we move in?" Nate beamed, Nora laughing softly behind his shoulder.

"If this baby doesn't come out of me by next week, so help me god…" Nora crouched down slowly, picking up a plastic cup she dropped.

"Sweetie, just let me grab it." Nate swooped down before she could grab it, handing it to her. "Besides, you still have three weeks until the due date."

"Sometimes babies come out early and are actually _healthy._ " She stuck her tongue out, playfully, but Nate saw a hint of sadness behind her eyes. Ever since the first baby she was nervous about getting pregnant. Nate was ready to start a family, though, and admittedly she was too. So here they were, years later, hoping for the best.

Nate leaned against the breakfast bar, sighing heavily. "It wasn't your fault, you know. Doctor said it was unexpected, they don't even know what caused it-"

"And that's what scares me." Nora tossed the plastic cup in the trash. "What if I end up messing up again, and Shaun..." She rubbed her hands protectively over her belly, swallowing hard as tears built up in her eyes. "I just don't want to lose another one… Not this late in the game…"

"Nora, look at me." Nate placed a hand on her shoulders, using his free one to make her look him in the eyes. "Don't worry, everything is going to be ok. Shaun will be here in three weeks and it'll be smooth sailing from then on." Nate hugged her softly.

"Well, not smooth sailing. We'll still have to raise him for the next eighteen years." She laughed softly, sniffing as she ran her hands along Nate's back.

"We're gonna be fine, Nora." Nate kissed her cheek. "Listen, why don't you get dressed and we'll head out for dinner. I'll take you to your favorite diner. The one with the best chicken fried steak." He smiled at her.

She wiped her eyes. "I do love chicken fried steak," She started heading for the bedroom. Nate smiled at her, watching her beautiful figure disappear behind the door frame.

Nora rubbed over her tummy, sighing contentedly at her fullness. "Good thing about being pregnant is you can eat like a cow and no one judges you." She laughed softly.

Nate laughed along with her, reaching to open the door for her. A man walked in, accidentally shoving Nora as he was talking to someone behind him. "Hey, man watch it." Nate warned.

"Hey, watch-" He reached a hand out to Nora. Nate gripped him by the wrist.

"Don't touch her." Nate stared at the man in the eyes. The man smelled of beer and cigarettes. "Just back off."

"What the hell is your problem, asshole?" The man jerked his arm free.

"My problem is you almost knocked over my wife." Nate practically growled.

"Maybe she should watch where she's going." He said as he started to walk by.

"Hey, _asshole,_ you should watch where _you're_ going." Nate turned his body to follow him.

"Nate, really I'm fine." Nora adjusted her hair, pulling her jacket tightly over her shoulders.

"See, the broad is all right." The man said with a smug grin, turning just barely to look at Nate. "So quit bitchin'."

Nate bit into his lip. "You better apologize to her." Nate stepped up to him, shoving a palm flat against his back, causing him to lean forward from the sudden pressure.

Nora grabbed his arm to hold him back, "Please, Nate let's go."

The man grumbled, "Make me, motherfucker." Nate slammed his fist into the man's face. He stumbled backwards, but quickly regained his stance. He threw a punch, Nate grabbed onto his arm and jerked him forward, causing him to nearly fall forward onto the ground.

"Stop!" Nora screamed. The man swung around, disoriented by his surroundings and slammed an elbow into Nora's abdomen. She stumbled backwards, letting out a scream of pain. "Nate! Nate, oh my God!"

"Oh, shit man. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—" The man stopped as Nate gave him a look of death that even the devil would be scared of.

"I'm gonna fucking kill you!" He shouted as the man ran off. He quickly turned to Nora, looking over her pained face. "Baby, you're gonna be ok. Don't worry, everything's gonna be ok."

She gasped as she looked down. "Nate!" Blood was pooling down her legs.

"Nora!" Nate rushed over to her, helping her settle onto the waiting bench. "Someone call an ambulance!" He cried out, looking around. Several people stood around, concerned. A few of them ran off, hopefully to call an ambulance.

"Nate, the baby… what if the baby…" She started weeping, clenching onto his jacket. Nate buried his face in her hair, trying to calm himself as he breathed heavily. "The baby…" She whispered with a cry.

"He's gonna be ok." Nate said, mostly trying to reassure himself. "Shaun's gonna be ok…"

Nate sat outside the hospital room, anxiously tapping his feet. He shifted his position in the chair over a million times as he waited to be let into the room. The Doctors said it would take anywhere from thirty minutes to two hours to help Shaun. After what felt like an eternity, they opened the door. "Mr. Graham, you can come in now." The nurse said as she held the door open.

Nate walked in, looking at Nora as she held the tiny baby. The worried expression on his face softened into a smile filled with disbelief. The baby was mostly silent, every now and then letting out a soft yawn. "Hi, honey." She beamed at him, her eyes red from crying. "Look who came to see us already…" She ran a gentle finger over Shaun's face. He opened his mouth instinctively, shifting under his swaddling.

Nate pulled a chair up next to her bed. "Hey, little guy." He smiled, looking over the newborn infant. His chest swelled with warmth as he watched Shaun's body stretching underneath the soft fabric. "How are you doing? You came really, really early…" He laughed softly, his eyes welling up as he looked over the baby.

"The doctor says we should be able to go home in a couple of days… He wasn't too early, apparently… Only about a week, they said… they just want to make sure everything is healthy with him before we check out…" Nora smiled at him. "You want to hold him now?" She asked as she looked up at him, her own eyes tearing up as well.

"Yes, yes…" Nate said in an excited whisper. He gently grabbed Shaun, carefully cradling his head as he held him. "Hey, Shaun…" He smiled down, looking at the baby's reddened cheeks as he yawned again. "It's me, your daddy… I can't wait till you can come home and see your room… You're gonna love the rocking chair. Hand crafted, it'll put you to sleep like a… well, like a baby." He laughed again. "You're gonna love it." Nate looked up at Nora. "You did a great job, honey. I'm sorry about what happened…"

"It's fine, Nate. That guy was being an asshole." She covered her mouth softly. "I mean, jerk. We should probably work on our swearing in front of the baby."

"Yea, maybe. Wouldn't want his first word to be something terrible." Nate caressed the baby's cheek. "I love you, honey, and Shaun. He's perfect… This is perfect. Everything is perfect." He sighed happily, feeling the newborn wiggle gently in his arms as he made soft noises.

"Yea…" Nora smiled at him, for the first time in a long time without a look of worry. "It is perfect."


	22. Chapter 21: Those in Need

!NSFW Chapter! This is your warning!

(Sorry this chapter took so long, I rewrote it at least three different times because I wasn't sure which direction I wanted to take at first. Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter. Please forgive any misspellings, I wanted to get the chapter out ASAP because it's been so long. Thanks again for all the support! I really appreciate it!)

Chapter 21: Those in Need

Nate finished firing the last of his clip into the super mutant. When that wasn't enough to stop the giant, he began to use his fists. Luckily, with the power armor it was just enough to take down the last mutant. Danse came around the corner, his weapon ready. "Good job, soldier."

Nate huffed, wishing he had something to wipe the sweat off his forehead. "Thanks, Paladin." He smiled, taking the quiet moment to reload his laser rifle.

"Looks like you hate these mutants as much as I do." He said with a serious tone.

"Absolutely. Wiping them out was a pleasure." Nate agreed.

"I wish all of mankind shared your sentiment. These monstrosities are just another example of man taking a step forward only to stumble two steps back." He sighed heavily, shaking his head. "I've seen what these super mutants do to people, can you imagine what the synths would do to us if they ever got the upper hand? It would be Armageddon repeated. Maybe even the end of everything we hold dear."

"I understand." Nate nodded his head.

"Before we secure the room, I wanted to take a moment and apologize for my behavior…" He cleared his throat. "I know at times I may seem disagreeable, but all I really want is the best for the people of the Commonwealth. The problem is that people often don't realize the trouble they've gotten themselves into until it is too late." Danse's expression turned serious. "I meant no disrespect to your friend, Natalie. I know how terrible raiders can be. The Brotherhood has lost too many good people at the expense of those lunatics."

"I understand, Danse… but you should probably apologize to her, too." Danse certainly means well, even if he comes off strong at times.

"I plan to. I just want you to know where I'm coming from, that I'm not out to… _get_ everyone…" He frowned a bit at the statement.

Nate nodded his head. "You know what? you're a good man Danse. I can see that." He gave Danse a smile, hoping that serious expression wouldn't be stuck on his face forever. "Come on, let's finish up."

Natalie walked around the airport base, looking for Maccready and Hancock. She shivered a bit, the late afternoon air feeling cold through the material of the Brotherhood uniform. Haylen brought her the extra uniform, stating that her vault suit would be returned once it was clean. Natalie hoped it wouldn't take too long, the material of the uniform felt even thinner than that of her vault suit. Not to mention how skin tight it was. Natalie saw the worn duster within a group of uniformed Brotherhood members. "Maccready!" Natalie called out to him as he aimed his weapon towards a dummy at the makeshift shooting range.

"Hey, Natalie." He gave her a short wave.

"Hey," She ran up to him. "Practicing?"

"Well, they do say practice makes perfect." He shrugged. "I'm trying to figure out what you do once you've hit perfect." He said with a smug tone.

She rolled her eyes exaggeratedly. "Where'd Hancock go?" She looked around, the ghoul nowhere to be seen.

"Probably taking a chem break somewhere hidden. He's trying really hard to keep the stuff away from you." Maccready swung his weapon over his shoulder.

"How kind. Although, I doubt he'd even be willing to hand the stuff over if I asked for it." She laughed softly. "So I'm thinking about joining the Brotherhood. Maybe just to help some of the people out there…" He didn't say anything, a look of exasperation on his face. "Here, let me try." She reached out for his gun.

"Why the Brotherhood? I thought we were doing good on our own." He frowned at her. "We could always take up some odd jobs, get some extra caps?" He suggested.

She fired a couple of rounds, aiming for what was the head area of the dummy. She missed two of the shots. "I'm not worried about the caps… And we are doing good, but honestly look at the armory they have here." She gestured to a group of people practicing with different energy weapons. "Not to mention the power armor."

He huffed. "I just don't want you getting caught up with all this… It's best to not make too many enemies, and the Brotherhood has quite a few out here in the Commonwealth." Natalie felt his eyes following her as she reloaded the rifle.

She aimed at the hay dummy, breathing in steadily. She fired a couple rounds, hitting each shot in the head. When she finished she turned towards Maccready over her shoulder. "How'd I do?"

"Looks like you hit mostly headshots. Only missed two bullets, I think. Must have a great teacher?" He smirked at her. She gave the gun back to him and he slung it back over his shoulder. "It feels kind of strange, to be surrounded by so many people. Kind of reminds me of the gunners, without the blood sport, that is." He laughed softly.

Natalie watched his face as she stepped closer to him, tugging lightly on his duster. "Well, let's find somewhere more quiet." She thought of the night before and how their kiss was interrupted.

"Quiet, huh…" He reached a hand up, pushing a stray hair gently out the way. "I think I've got a nice place…"

They walked through the airport, ending up on the sea side. It didn't appear that any patrols went through the area. Maccready brought Natalie into on old airplane shell, helping her step on the tattered boards. "Hard to believe these things used to fly, huh?" He said with a nervous laugh, tapping the wood.

"Yea, crazy…" Natalie swallowed hard, watching his eyes as they looked over the plane. "This is good, right? This spot right here. Nobody should come through?"

"Yea—" Maccready was cut off as Natalie eagerly pulled him into a kiss. She ran her tongue along his lower lip, slowly slipping it into his mouth. Their tongues rolled smoothly as he pulled at the zipper of her jumpsuit. "You're just… raring to go, huh?" He gasped the words as he pulled back momentarily to look at the zipper as he yanked it down.

"Just excited to get you out of this dirty thing." She quickly tugged off his duster, making quick work of ridding his undershirt and scarf as well. He let out a soft giggle as her hand caressed a ticklish spot. She watched his face for a moment as it burned even brighter red. "Cute…" She said with a small snort. He grumbled something under his breath as she brought her lips to his neck, gently rolling her tongue over his flesh. He tasted salty with a hint of smoke. Her teeth grazed his skin every now and then as he attempted to pull the jumpsuit past her arms. Everything felt like it was on fire and like she couldn't move fast enough.

He stepped back, struggling with the last inch of material. "God, what the hell are these zippers made out of?" He grunted as the zipper broke. "Oh, shi-"

Natalie let out a laugh. "Looks like you might be pretty excited, too." Her laugh quickly silenced as he jerked the material over her legs, making a trail of kisses back up to her mouth.

He clumsily slid a hand down into her panties, taking in a sharp breath as he felt her. She was slightly embarrassed, having gotten so excited so quickly. But after the night when they were interrupted she couldn't stop thinking about the way his body felt under her touch. "Fuck…" He breathed heavily into her ear as his fingers toyed with her. "You feel really fucking good…"

"That's the first time I—ah" She gasped as a finger rubbed over the sensitive nerves. "I don't think you've ever… said that word." She breathed in small gasps as his fingers trailed between teasing her entrance and running over her clit.

"I'm making an exception." Maccready said breathily. She could feel his smirk against her neck as he continued to kiss, every now and then nibbling on her collarbone. "Feels like you're ready for me." He pulled back, licking his lips in anticipation.

"You too," Natalie said with a smirk of her own, grabbing at the bulge in his pants. She tugged down the rest of her uniform, pulling her shoes off as she stepped out of them. When she noticed Maccready wasn't getting undressed she stopped, awkwardly covering herself. "What is it?" She looked over her shoulder. "Is someone behind me?"

"No, you just…" He bit his lip before letting out a small laugh. "You look nice..." He stepped closer to her, bringing his lips gently to hers as he ran his hands through her hair. She pulled at his pants, struggling with the button as his kisses pulled deeper. He ran a hand down her back, laughing against her lips as he felt her struggling. "You need some help?"

"Guy pants are different." She mumbled, looking down momentarily as she bit into her lip. She quickly crouched down on the wooden floor panels and gripped the material firmly, yanking them down as he gasped in surprise. His erection sprang free. She leaned back a bit, bringing her hand up to stroke the length. "There we go." She said with a smirk.

He rolled his eyes "You could've just asked for help… I hope you didn't tear my pants…" He let out a breathy laugh that quickly turned into a moan as she ran her thumb over the tip, smearing his precum across the head.

She looked up at him, flashing a grin as he tried to calm himself. "Well if I did, I guess we're even."

He bit his lip, placing his hand into her hair as he nudged his hips forward. "So you said you've got some… moves… huh?" He placed his hand over hers, helping her stroke over himself. "Wanna show them to me now?"

Natalie pulled him closer to her, slowly opening her mouth around the tip. She watched as he looked over her with anticipation. A lick over his lips and she felt a heat spreading in her belly. She pulled back momentarily and he let out a groan of disapproval. "Try not to make a mess." She said with a joking warning.

"What makes you think you're that good?" He teased with smile.

"Really? You had to stop me last time because you weren't going to make it." She snorted a laugh and then brought her mouth back to him. He removed his hand from hers, allowing her to stroke at her own pace. She breathed softly over the skin, his member twitching as the cool air hit it. She looked back up at him to see that his eyes were closed, his hand caressing her hair gently. In one smooth motion she pulled his length in, taking it about halfway as she ran her tongue over the smooth skin. She pulled back slow, letting her cheeks hollow as she made a sucking motion.

He gasped, gripping her hair firmly. "Oh, fu- jesus…" He breathed out with a moan. She continued working, holding his hip steady as he attempted to thrust every now and then. Her hand worked the parts that she couldn't take into her mouth. "That feels good." He said softly. She looked up at him momentarily to see his eyes on her, watching her every move. She felt a heat rush over her body, pooling into her abdomen.

Natalie pulled off of him, still stroking his length. She was starting to feel light headed from the rush of blood. "Does it?" She asked, her voice a bit shaky. She breathed heavily, closing her mouth over the tip as she twirled her tongue softly. His eyes stayed on her, lust laden and weighing her down with heat that caused her face to redden even deeper. She took his whole length in, burying her nose in the soft curls. He gripped at the back of her head, letting out an incredulous sound as his hips jerked forward.

She pulled back quickly, gasping for air as she did so. She took only a second to catch her breath, diving down on his length a second time. She reached a hand up, caressing his thigh to steady his thrusts. He grunted as she squeezed into his leg.

"I-I'm getting close…" Maccready breathed out shakily, attempting to pull his length from her mouth.

She pulled to the tip, making a show of licking her lips when she removed them from his swollen head. She saw his eyes on her mouth and she bit into her lip, purposely attempting to rile him up. "You want to come…?" She asked with a soft voice, giving a firm stroke to his length. It twitched under her hand, eager for release.

He bit into his lip, closing his eyes momentarily as he gathered his composure. "God, yes…" She began to take him back into her mouth, but he quickly stopped her with a tug of her hair. "You mind if I do it at my own pace?"

She looked at him, nodding slowly. She was able to take his whole length without too much discomfort, so she figured it wouldn't be too hard to handle. "Just don't forget to let me breathe." She gave a small laugh.

"I won't, beautiful." Maccready smirked at her. The word threw her off guard and she barely had a second to catch her breath before he slipped his length inside her mouth. He moved slow at first, making it all the way to the back of her throat before pulling out shallowly. He tilted his head back, letting out lustful groans each time he pushed in fully. She held onto his hip as his thrusts grew more rapid, his member plummeting deep into her mouth. His hand tangled into her hair as he moved it out of her face, watching her with a concentrated stare. He let out a deep moan as the hot liquid spilled into the back of her throat. He muttered swears as he attempted to pull out, but she grabbed his hip firmly, taking as much as she could from him. She swallowed around him, her tongue rolling along the underside of his throbbing member. "Oh, god… fuck, fuck!" He moaned loudly as he gripped firmly on her hair, pulling her head off of him slowly. She managed to swallow the majority of the cum, but some still dripped from her mouth.

Maccready quickly leaned down, pushing Natalie back onto the tattered wooden floor, his mouth hot on hers as his tongue ran over hers. His fingers quickly moved to her lips, hot and swollen under his touch. He teased a finger, slowly, letting out a small chuckle as she writhed under his touch. "Rob, please." She pleaded, wanting him to push her over the edge. He brought his mouth down to her neck, kissing softly before placing a firm bite. She threw her head back as he used two of his fingers to run over her sensitive bud. She felt her legs shaking, the pooling heat in her belly overtaking her whole body as the orgasm crashed down on her. He let out a soft moan against her collarbone, her muscles clenching on his fingers as her wetness grew. As her orgasm faded to a dull throbbing sensation between her legs, he released his fingers from her folds. He looked over her face for a moment, a warm expression across it as he gave her a soft smile. "I… I really…" Maccready paused, placing another kiss along her shoulder as he lay next to her.

"You really what?" Natalie asked with a dazed expression, still feeling the high of her orgasm.

"You told me the other night… You love me." His voice barely above a whisper as he reached for his scarf to clean up. "Did you really mean that?"

Natalie thought back on it. She hadn't intentionally told him, thinking she was speaking to Jeff in her dream, not to Maccready. She felt a nervous tinge in her stomach, not wanting to admit it wasn't directed at him. "Maybe…" She sat up. "I think I'm getting there." She admitted.

He didn't say anything at first, a slight look of disappointment on his face. "I don't want this to keep going if it means I… that I might lose you." She heard him swallow hard.

"You won't lose me." Natalie ran a hand comfortingly along his back.

"If you run off with the Brotherhood... You know how many of them die out there each day? For what, to risk their lives for some strangers?" He huffed softly. "They've already got Nate running field missions for fu… goodness sake. You think they value people's lives."

"I do… Why else would they risk it?" She reached for her clothes to start getting dressed, Maccready doing so as well. "The people of the Commonwealth need help. And if no one is going to offer it, why not me?" Natalie felt a tightness in her throat.

"Because you shouldn't risk your life for some assholes that probably don't give a crap about you." He pulled on his boots, slamming his foot down to get the heel in place.

"Sometimes I think of how lucky I am to be alive. If Nate hadn't have been there I would've ended up dead by now. Fighting mutants and raiders… fighting deathclaws? There's no way I would've even made it to Diamond City. Much less Goodneighbor." Natalie felt her chest tighten. "My father… I think he would've wanted me to do what I could to help those who need it."

"Look, Nat… All I'm trying to say is you should look out for yourself. You go around helping people and they're bound to take advantage of you. Put a bullet in your back once the work is done." He reached a hand out to her, rubbing along her arm comfortingly. "I'm sure that your dad would've wanted you to be safe, above all else."

"You don't know…" Her breath hitched as she spoke. "My dad was a fighter, and he would've wanted me to be a fighter, too. Not a coward that's too scared to take chances on strangers." She felt an anger burning in her chest, a mixture of sadness at the memory of her late father. "And what about people who have taken chances on me? Nate, Preston, Nick, Piper… hell, even Danse. What about you? When those raiders came, you could've ditched me and saved yourself…" Maccready opened his mouth to say something, only to close it a second later. She breathed heavily, trying to calm herself. "I'm gonna head back to the Prydwen… I care about you, Robert. I really do… But it's my decision on what sacrifices I want to make."

"I know it is…" He pushed his hand through his hair. He turned around, mumbling something under his breath. Natalie looked at him, giving final nod of her head as she made her exit. She hadn't meant to upset him so much, but maybe he just needed time alone. Time to think things over. She held onto her jumpsuit, trying to keep it closed as she walked. _Why'd he have to break the zipper?_ She cursed under her breath, stomping as she stepped.

Nate groaned as he slumped out of the power armor. "You did an outstanding job, soldier." Danse congratulated him.

"Outstanding." Nate repeated dryly. He felt tired from all the fighting. Not to mention the dirt and grime that covered his body. "I think I'm going to head to the shower roo—"

"Knight Graham." Proctor Ingram interrupted abruptly. "Are you expecting any visitors?"

"Visitors?" Nate looked at her, confused.

She frowned a bit. "There's a lady down at the Boston Airport gate who is attempting to meet with you. Dressed in red—"

"Piper?" Nate couldn't help the smile that crossed his lips. "I mean, yea, I was expecting her."

"Is Maxson ok with this?" Ingram looked to Danse for approval. Danse simply shrugged. "Fine… Come with me, Knight."

Ingram led Nate down to the entrance at the Boston airport where Piper was standing next to a pair of Knights, being uncharacteristically quiet. When she saw Nate, however, her whole demeanor changed back to the usual Piper. "Nate!" She gasped out in excitement, one of the Knights turned to aim his weapon at her as Piper ran towards Nate.

Proctor Ingram put a hand out in warning towards the Knight. "Lower your weapons. She's a visitor of Graham's."

"Damn. Guy's got a whole circus." The Knights laughed between each other.

"Hardy-har." Piper stuck her tongue out at them. She wrapped her arms around Nate's neck, standing slightly on her toes to reach his height. "It's so good to see you! I've got great news about the lead on Shaun."

"That's great." Nate squeezed her tightly, enjoying her embrace. "It's good to see you, too."

Ingram cleared her throat, clearly to break up the hug. "You're free to walk around the Boston Airport, but until I have approval from Elder Maxson she can't board the Prydwen." She began to head back to the vertibird.

"Oh, what a wonderful welcome." Piper shouted to an invisible crowd. "First I get my notebook confiscated by that guy," She pointed to one of the Knights, "and then I get locked out like some kind of dog." She huffed, crossing her arms.

Nate gave a laugh, "Come on, Piper. We can find somewhere private to talk."

They walked into the old waiting room of the airport, most of the building was destroyed in the war. Nate sat in the seat at one of the benches, Piper settling down next to him. "So we weren't able to dig up too much about the Railroad. We did find a sort of passphrase, maybe. 'Follow the Freedom Trail'." She ran her finger along her chin in thought. "We think it might have to do with something near the Boston Commons…"

"The Freedom Trail." Nate repeated. "I know what that is, something pre-war. People would walk it to stop along the historical sites."

"Maybe they're located in one of the buildings?" Piper proposed.

"Could be. We'll have to check it out." He smiled at her. "So, uh… How's Nat doing?"

"She's doing great, back to her usual self. I actually wanted to thank you for that." She fiddled with her thumbs, clearing her throat. "If you hadn't encouraged me to be more involved in her life, I feel like things would've gotten worse. I mean, I know it's only been like two days but she really has straightened up her act." She laughed awkwardly, Nate giving a chuckle at how nervous she seemed. "And what about Natalie? Is she holding up ok?"

"Well, she's uh… She's having withdrawal problems from the drugs." Nate sighed heavily. "But I really think she's handling it well. They've got a doctor on the Prydwen helping her get through it."

"That's great. Well, not the whole addiction thing." She bit her lip in an obvious attempt to halt her rambling.

Nate looked over her, and for once he didn't feel the ghost of Nora over her features. He cleared his throat, suddenly feeling nervous as he spoke the next sentence. "When we went back to Sanctuary I… I, uh… Buried my wife."

Piper's eyes went wide "Oh, that… I must've been really tough. I-I'm sorry." She frowned with genuine concern.

"Don't be. It was something that needed to be done." He gave her a small smile. "I think it kind of helped me to see that… maybe I can start to move on. I can't just dwell on the past." He looked up at the sky for a moment, enjoying the different shades of purple and red that crossed as the sun set. "I'm still going to get Shaun back, and I'm going to make the best of this life."

Piper smiled back at him, tilting her head slightly. "That's great, Nate. I know that's all I'm trying to do."

A breeze swept over them, Nate shivering a bit. He looked at Piper, who was pulling her jacket tighter of her body to shield herself from the cold. "Do you have anywhere to stay tonight? I mean… Since they won't let you on the Prydwen?" Nate asked with concern.

"Uh, I can find somewhere." She laughed nervously. "I mean, there's got to be a place around here I can sleep. Maybe set up a fire."

"No way, Piper." Nate stood up quickly. "I've got a spare sleeping bag on the Prydwen. I'll go grab it and we can stay here for the night."

"Are you sure? I'll be fine, I've slept in worse conditions." She rubbed the back of her neck.

"I'll be back in a minute." He gave her a small wink and headed for the vertibird to board the Prydwen.

Natalie sat at the edge of the walkway of the forecastle, her feet swaying in the air. She took a deep breath, watching as the last glimpse of the sun disappeared over the horizon. _What do I do?_ She thought to herself as she kicked her feet in the air. Somewhere inside she knew she loved Robert, wouldn't mind spending the rest of her life with him. But what would be the point of her life if she sat on the sidelines and watched those in need suffer? Especially when she could make a difference.

Natalie heard heavy footsteps behind her, heading towards her direction. She breathed softly as she rested her head on the bars, staring at the sky while running her hand over the bandage where the IV had previously been. "I'll leave in a moment." She said nonchalantly, thinking it might be a Brotherhood member.

"Dangerous to be out here, sunshine." Hancock's voice sounded rough in the air.

She smiled at his voice, but stayed staring out into the sky. "Maybe I like the danger…" She said with a monotone voice, not bothering to look over her shoulder even as he stepped closer. Strange, this was the second time he found her in a moment of distress. "What're you doing up here?" She adjusted the leather jacket she was wearing, thankful that Haylen offered it when she returned her freshly washed vault suit.

"Looking for a good place to be alone." He sat down next to her, letting his feet hang off the edge as well. "Brotherhood assholes keep telling me to stay in line and it's starting to bother the hell out of me. I need a place to cool off so I don't go feral on them." He chuckled softly.

"Is that where you were earlier? Rob-uh… Maccready thought you were just taking a chem break." She quickly corrected herself.

"That too." He sighed heavily. "Guess I can't do that with you here though, huh?" He gave a soft smile.

"Honestly, I don't give a shit…" She shrugged as he gave her a suspicious look. "I know you wouldn't share your stash anyways." She joked.

Hancock scoffed. "So true." He said sarcastically, pulling out a canister of mentats and popping a couple in his mouth. "Don't tell Nate, though. He'll flip."

"Not on my life." She gave him a small smile. "Hey, Hancock… if I joined the Brotherhood… How would you feel about that?"

"Eh, it's not like I can govern what you do. If you want to run around with some war bigots, go ahead." He looked out into the sky. "It's not the worst group you could run with."

"But it's not the best, huh?" She leaned back, watching the sky with him. "What about the minutemen? They're small now but I feel like they could help a lot of people."

"Listen, sweetheart…" He sighed softly, turning to face her. "I'm not really great with life advice and shit, but I can tell you this. If you want to go help people, you don't have to run with any group. Sometimes it's better to go solo, to discover where your values and morals lie."

She nodded her head slowly, processing the words. "You mean like a mercenary? Like Maccready?"

Hancock gave a small laugh. "He's not puttin' any crazy ideas in your head, is he? Not everything is about caps, you know."

"I know, I know…" She sighed heavily. "But how do you know who to trust when you help them?"

"Ah, trust." Hancock pulled out his blade, twirling it along his fingers. "Something in short supply out here. But—" He moved his fingers, doing a fancy twirl with the knife before throwing it in the air and catching it "—that's where you learn to defend yourself. And let me tell you, you're doing a pretty damn good job so far of staying alive."

"But I'm not good at protecting myself." She said with a small groan.

"It's not that, you just haven't been taught the right way." He smirked at her.

"The right way?" She squinted her eyes at him.

"Some people have this theory that all dogs are born knowing how to swim. You throw a dog into a lake and he'll swim to the other side, survival thing."

"Are you suggesting to throw me in the water?" She had a slight worried expression. "Because I actually _don't_ know how to swim that well."

"No, sunshine. What I'm trying to say is people sort of have their own survival instinct. Throw 'em in a fight and what do they do? Run or fight." His smirk turned into a grin. "And you're a fighter, trust me."

She looked over his face for a moment, thinking over something. "So you're saying I should run into a fight, no protection, by myself and I'll learn how to fight."

"Not exactly… When the time comes I'm sure you'll have no trouble defending yourself." He gave his knife a final twirl before placing it back in it's holster.

She turned to look at the sky again, watching the stars. _I'm a fighter…_ Natalie thought to herself. Maybe if she showed Maccready she was good at defending herself, he wouldn't be so concerned about her helping people. Maybe if she showed him what it was like to be helped… "Hancock, can you help me with something?"

"What's that?" He asked.

"I need you to help me take out some gunners." She grabbed onto the bars of the walkway, pulling herself up to stand.

"Just me and you?" He asked, a suspicious look in his eye.

"Yup. Me and you, and hopefully a suit of power armor." She stretched her legs, trying to get the tingly sensation to go away.

"Sounds like trouble." He paused a moment, as if to think it over. "I like trouble." He gave her a toothy grin.


	23. Chapter 22: Selfless

Sorry it's been forever. I'm still here, just slowly working on things. Hope you are all enjoying the story. I'm thinking of making this a two part story since the chapter count is getting pretty high and we're only halfway through things. I'm also considering rewriting a new story with new characters after I finish this one. But that won't be until later on. Anyways, let me know what you think!  
Thanks for all the kudos and support! It is much appreciated!3

Chapter 22: Selfless

"So what's the plan?" Hancock asked as they walked down the hall of the Prydwen.

"Hopefully Nate will be willing to share his power armor…" Natalie headed towards the dining hall. "If we're really lucky, he might even let us use his Pip Boy..."

"What are you gonna tell him? You think he'll just give you that stuff without reason?" He looked at her skeptically.

She frowned at the thought. "Maybe since I've got a bodyguard he won't be so hesitant if I tell him I'm heading out..." She motioned towards him, he crossed his arms and let out a disapproving grunt. "What?"

"You see the kind of ghoul I am? You really think he's going to let you run around with me…" He gave a small snort.

She bit her lip. "I'll figure something out… Just wait here for a moment." She turned back around to continue walking, running straight into Paladin Danse. She stepped away from the metal plating, rubbing her cheek where it bumped into the power armor. "Oh—sorry I wasn't-"

"It's all right civilian." Danse reassured her, adjusting his stance. "May I help you with something?"

"Yea, Nate was on a mission with you today, right?" Natalie looked up at him, he was clear over three feet taller than her with his armor on.

"Correct." He answered quickly. "Is there something you need from him?"

"Well…" She hesitated, looking back at Hancock, who gave her a concerned look. "Actually, maybe you would be able to help me?" She said after a moment, a plan whirring in her head. "See, I've been a bit hesitant about joining the brotherhood because I don't know how to use the power armor. Maybe you could show me how to…?" She gave him a small smile, trying her best to keep a friendly tone.

Danse perked a brow. "Well, I can assure you there are other positions within the brotherhood if you feel uncomfortable on the field."

Natalie's smile quickly disappeared, her brows slightly furrowing. "Do I not seem fit to be a soldier?" She asked a bit more harshly than she intended. It was getting frustrating how much people doubted her abilities. Sure she had help along the way, but if she couldn't survive she would be six feet in the ground… or worse.

Danse's eyes widened slightly as he tried to correct himself. "No, it isn't that… I just…" He cleared his throat, glancing over at Hancock momentarily. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I just wanted to present you with more opportunities."

Natalie bit into her cheek, trying to force herself back into her friendly attitude. "It's fine." She exhaled heavily. "People out there need help…" She crossed her arms, standing as straight as she could. "I want to fight out there."

Danse nodded slowly. "Fine… I suppose I could teach you a few things. Meet with me first in the morning and we'll begin training." Danse slowly walked off. Natalie watched him disappear into a room down the hall.

Hancock patted her on the back softly. "Nice acting sister." He gave her a smile.

"I guess I wasn't completely acting… I dowant to help people…" She frowned slightly. "I guess we'll have to postpone heading out until I'm done training with Danse." She turned back to make her way to her bed. "One good thing is that I won't have to worry about Nate tying me down here."

"You know he only wants the best for you." Hancock said softly.

"I know…" She stopped walking, turning to face him. "I'm just tired of people not having faith in me… Everyone thinks I can't handle myself." Her expression dropped as she let out a sigh.

"Well then, just show 'em." Hancock's expression was soft as he looked at her.

Natalie opened her mouth to reply, but found nothing to say. "I'm gonna head to bed… Can you do me a favor? See if you can find out the location of Winlock and Barnes?"

"Oh, I already know where they are." Hancock gave a smug grin. "Gunner's don't walk into Goodneighbor without bein' undersurveillance."

Natalie gave him a grin, impressed by how resourceful he was. He gave her a nod as they headed separate ways.

The Prydwen was buzzing with activity as everyone began to make the way to their work areas. Nate adjusted his steps every now and then as people squeezed by him to head to the boarding deck. Some in power armor, ready for patrols. Others were in scribe attire, ready to aide the soldiers on the field. Nate couldn't help the sense of nostalgia run over him.

He was on his way to the mess hall to grab some food for him and Piper to share when he heard a voice call out to him. "Knight Graham." Maxson spoke with authority.

"Yes, sir?" Nate responded as the Elder looked him over for a moment.

"I want to commend you on your excellent work at Fort Strong." Maxson straightened his back somehow even more, standing slightly taller than Nate.

"Thank you, sir." Nate gave a nod.

"I have informed Paladin Danse of how I wish for you to proceed with your next mission." Maxson said.

"My next mission, sir?" Nate perked an eyebrow.

"I want you to remain our eyes and ears on the ground. Our current priority is locating the Institute. Use whatever means necessary to find their location and a way inside. Report to me with any information you find."

Nate nodded. "Yes sir."

"Ad Victorium." Maxson saluted before making his way back inside the Command Deck.

Nate managed to grab a tray full of food and began to make his way back to the vertibird, stopping when he noticed Maccready smoking a cigarette on the walkway. "Hey, Maccready." He called out.

Maccready turned quickly, snapping out of his daydreaming. "Hey, Nate." He said with a stale tone. "Going on a picnic?" He asked a bit sarcastically as he motioned towards the tray he was carrying.

"Oh, this? No, it's for Piper." He replied.

"Piper's here?" A look of confusion crossed his face. "Surprised I didn't hear her, she usually likes to pester people with her 'interviews.'" Maccready took a long drag from the cigarette.

"You're in a great mood today. Wake up on the wrong side of the bed?" Nate scoffed, beginning to walk past Maccready.

"It's bullshit, you know." Maccready threw his cigarette off the side of the railing. Nate turned to give him a questioning look. "All this Brotherhood of Steel crap. All they're going to do is make things worse."

"What makes you say that?" Nate asked.

"I've seen it happen. In the Capital Wastes…" He shoved his hands in his pockets, becoming a bit more withdrawn. "You think they're helping out, but really they're just forcing you to hand over your freedom. Weapons, crops… technology, especially."

"Are you trying to convince me to stop working with them?" Nate perked a brow.

"No, no… I'm not…" He sighed heavily. "Natalie is really wanting to join… I get that she wants to help people, but… In the Brotherhood you make a lot of enemies. Just like the gunners… Just like the Minutemen." His gaze dropped, a defeated look. "I just know how hard it is to shake yourself from a group once you get involved. People will constantly see you as a target."

"And you're worried she'll become a target?" Nate asked softly.

"Aren't you?" Maccready looked Nate in the eye, waiting for his reply. Nate bit his lip, unsure of what to say. "You can't say you're not worried about her… About her being ki…" He didn't finish his sentence.

"Of course, Maccready." Nate groaned a bit. "Look, I've already told her that I'd let her be more independent… Before the war, before we ended up here she probably never dreamed she'd have to shoot a gun, but she's been able to take care of herself. We can't always be there to protect her. She has to make her own choices. And we can't stop her, even if we're afraid to lose her." Nate watched as Maccready shook his head, as if to disagree.

"But if you could slim down the chances of her being hurt, just by getting her out of the line of fire… Wouldn't you do it?" Maccready turned, adjusting his hat as he looked at Nate over his shoulder. "I'm just worried because I couldn't save…" He trailed off, a pained expression on his face as he quickly turned back to face the water. "Not to mention, what if she doesn't have time for me?" He added quickly, almost as if to change the subject.

Nate stared at the back of Maccready. He looked small compared to the open sky. His shoulders sunken, his head down low. He looked defeated, as if he already lost his battle before even heading out. "Are you… in love with her?" Nate asked, already knowing the answer himself.

Maccready glanced over his shoulder once more to meet Nate's eyes before turning to look out at the sky. "Yea… Yea I am…" He spoke softly. He turned around, facing Nate as he leaned back against the railing. "I didn't think I'd ever do this again… fall in…" He trailed off, giving a small chuckle. "It's kind of scary…"

"You were in love before?" Nate asked a bit cautiously, not wanting to invade his privacy.

He gave a heavy sigh. "I was married a while back. Her name was Lucy, she was ripped apart by ferals when we holed up one night in a metro station…" He swallowed hard. "I couldn't get them off her, it was… it was too late by the time I grabbed my son…" He paused a beat. "I left him in the Capital Wasteland because it was too dangerous to bring him out here…"

"I'm glad you were able to save your son…" Nate spoke softly, looking down at the tray of food, thinking of how he was unable to save Nora. "I'm sorry… it's hard to adjust to that…" His voice cracked a bit at the end of his word.

"Yea, it is… That feels like it was years ago but it still hurts sometimes… I just don't want to lose Natalie if I can help prevent it." He turned back around to face Nate, grabbing for another cigarette in his pocket. "I've only known Natalie for a short time, but… I definitely don't want to lose her. Even if she doesn't love me back, I just want her to be safe…"

"The way I see it, a woman like Natalie. You can either stand up and fight with her, or you learn to say goodbye. She's not going to let people hold her back." Nate said. "Good luck…" He gave a small goodbye nod to Maccready, who simply turned back around to work on his cigarette.

"If you decide to join, this will be your designated power armor." Danse showed Natalie. "Each one needs a fusion core to work." He handed one to her. "Now just insert it, and turn the wheel to open the back."

She nodded her head, following his instructions. There was a pneumatic sound as the back opened up, revealing a cushioned inside. She held her breath as she moved inside. The machine encapsulated her and she let out a sigh of relief.

"Now, you'll notice there's a HUD that lists your vitals as well as the condition of each power armor piece. Whenever you need repairs, feel free to use the workshop here. Proctor Ingram has offered her assistance where needed." He showed her how to control the HUD, a small dial on her arm. "There's also a radio and map." A map. Good, that's what she would need to help find the location of the gunners. "Feel free to walk around." He stepped back.

She slowly moved her legs, surprised that there was no resistance against her. The armor easily moved with her body. "This is a lot easier than I thought." She gave a small laugh of surprise as she moved her arms.

Danse smiled at her. "Feels like you can take on the world." He placed his helmet on. "Now, let's head out to the airport below, you can practice your combat and weapon skills to get a feel of it in the power armor."

She followed him down the hallway. When they reached the mess hall, Hancock stood up from one of the tables where he had been having breakfast, somehow recognizing them with full armor. "Is that you in there, Nat?" He asked, looking over the armor with a grin.

She unhooked her helmet, pulling it off slowly. "Yea," She gave a small laugh. "How do I look?"

"Like you could take down a million raiders." He chuckled. "Pretty badass." He walked around her, looking over the metal. "Tell you what, the Brotherhood has some pretty fancy gear."

"Thanks. I'm about to go practice with Danse." She smirked. "Have you seen Maccready around? I haven't seen him since-"

"What about Maccready?" Maccready walked into the dining hall, crossing his arms and leaning against the doorframe, his brow perked in question.

Natalie bit into her cheek, Hancock looked at her for a second, as if to encourage her to speak. "Nothing, I just… I hadn't seen you since last night." She suddenly felt self-conscious in the armor. "I didn't know if you were still… upset."

He looked over her, his brows furrowed. "Upset? No… No…" He cleared his throat. "What are you doing? A training exercise?" His expression still showed how displeased he was, despite his attempt to lighten his tone.

Danse broke into the conversation, feeling the tension between them. "Initiate Graham has asked me to help her get acquainted with our power armor. She's considering joining with the Brotherhood in their fight against the menace of the Commonwealth."

Maccready nodded slowly. "Scum of the Commonwealth, huh? And just how often do you run into those? You lose a lot of soldiers on the field?" He tilted his chin in Danse's direction.

"It's a necessary risk, sometimes." Danse spoke firmly. "But with the right training, we can improve the odds of—"

"Survival? Not dying?" Maccready bit into his lip for a moment. "Why don't I come take a look at the training? I might learn a thing or two about surviving out there." He spoke with a harsh sarcastic tone.

"Actually, Maccready." Hancock spoke up now, walking over and slinging his arm around Maccready's shoulder. "Why don't you and I take a walk? Give Natalie some time to practice with the armor on her own…" Hancock tried to lead him away.

Maccready gave her a glare when she didn't protest, scoffing. "Oh, I see…" He gave a small chuckle, harsh and flat in tone. "Brotherhood hands you over some fancy ass power armor and suddenly they've got you on a leash, huh? Pretty soon they'll have you running out on the front lines to sacrifice your life. They'll send you into the most dangerous parts of the Commonwealth just to grab some junk of tech-"

Danse was about to speak up but Natalie quickly intercepted, "Maccready, don't be like that." she said, feeling a tightness in her chest. All she wanted to do was help, she didn't want him thinking she was choosing the Brotherhood over him or risking her life for nothing.

"Come on, initiate. We should get going." Danse said with a harsh tone, glaring at Maccready.

Maccready turned to walk back down the hallway. "Fine, whatever, fuck this. Come on Hancock."

Hancock followed after him, an apologetic look on his face. Natalie slipped her helmet back on, facing Danse. "Let's go." She said in a broken tone. Danse nodded, leading her down the hallway.

"I spy something horribly dead and decaying." Piper said as she kicked the lifeless feral body with her shoe. "So the Freedom Trail leads here, do you think it's a metaphor for something?" She asked as she looked over the old church.

"Well, there's got to at least be a clue as to the where the Railroad would be…" Nate looked over a scrap of paper he had. He managed to scribble down what he thought to be some sort of code that had been written on markers along the trail. Looking over the church, however, he had no idea where the code would come in handy. "I guess we should just take a look around?" Nate proposed.

"Or we could take a look in this secret passage?" Piper motioned towards a very obvious tunnel underneath the broken walkway from the second floor.

"Or that." Nate smirked at her. They stepped down the damp floor, the atmosphere instantly becoming muggy in the cramped tunnel. "Geez, what the hell is that smell?"

"My guess is more ferals." Piper groaned. As if on cue a feral suddenly leapt from the ground, barreling towards Piper. Nate quickly grabbed it by the throat, managing to slam it on the ground. He quickly pulled out his pistol, ending the feral with one shot. Catching her breath she let out a small laugh "My hero… Guess I should keep my weapon out." She pulled the pistol from its holster.

Nate gave her a smirk as he stood back up, dusting his hands on his clothes. They continued walking. "So, if you don't mind me asking. What was it like being in the military?" Another feral rose up and she immediately fired two shots into it, the body falling with the second shot.

"It wasn't too bad, actually. War was difficult and there were times where I thought I wouldn't make it home…" As another feral stumbled towards them He reached for a machete he managed to bring along, shoving it into the feral's head with a grunt. "But everyone really looked out for each other. We always had each other's backs. And no matter what, I always knew Nora would be at home waiting for me." He looked at her and gave a warm smile. He felt more comfortable talking about Nora with her. She understood how much it helped during the recovery. Although at times he worried she might be getting frustrated about it… "She's what kept me going out there, what kept me focused on not dying." He gave a small chuckle.

Piper smiled at him, warm and comforting. "She sounds like she was your rock." She pointed her weapon towards another feral as it slowly walked towards their direction.

"Yea, she was. When my temper got out of control, she was always there to help calm me. She was strong, confident…" Nate let his eyes drift over Piper's face, feeling a warmth swell up in his chest. "Beautiful…" Piper fired a few round into the feral as it stepped closer, breaking into a sprint and attempting to lunge at them. She managed to take it down in the nick of time.

Piper huffed as she continued to walk forward. "She sounds amazing." She said and Nate caught the slight disappointment in her eyes.

"She was." Nate sighed heavily. "But you know… I uh… I find a lot of those features in you, but in different ways…"

"What do you mean?" She asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Well, you're definitely beautiful." He held his breath for a moment, waiting for her response. She gave a small laugh with a snort, noticing his struggle with admitting these things. He laughed softly with her. "You're absolutely one of the strongest people I've met. The way you're not afraid to tell the truth. The way you can go and stand up to people who are doing wrong." He looked over her face again, a grin tracing his lips. "You're strong in a way many people are afraid to be, even back then it was rare. I really do admire that about you."

A blush was creeping up her cheeks and she adjusted her hair as they slowed their steps, coming up to a dead end "Thanks, Nate… I reallyadmire you, too."

At the dead end there was a large dial on the wall, but other than that there was no indication of where the Railroad could be. "There's got to be something… Why would they lead to a dead end?" Nate looked over the dial, reaching up to dust it off.

"The Freedom Trail Boston…" Piper read the letters aloud. "Hey, what's this arrow for?" She ran her finger across the etched arrow.

Nate stared at it for a moment, a frown across his face as he thought it over. He pulled out the scrap paper, looking over the numbers and letters. "Don't laugh at me if this doesn't work." He warned as he reached up towards the emblem.

"No promises." Piper said as she watched with interest. Nate turned the dial, the letters shifted. Piper's mouth dropped open. "No way!" She gasped out.

"All right, so I'm guessing we have to use this spell out a code. Which, judging by these letters, would be the word Railroad." Nate gave a small laugh. "Clever."

"Wait, you probably have to push something, right? Like a HAM radio or typewriter or something." Piper said as she simultaneously shoved her hand towards the middle of the emblem. It made a click sound as she pushed it all the way in. "There we go. Not many people would think to do this, the Railroad is pretty smart for setting up an entrance this way." She stated as she gave a look of impression.

"Hopefully the entrance…" Nate remarked. After putting in the code the space next to the dial shifted, cracking open to reveal another tunnel. Nate held his breath as dust escaped and a cold wind blew through. After the wall finished shifting he took a step forward cautiously. The sound echoed a bit and he froze in place. What if it was a trap? What if it was an ambush? What if—

"Come on, let's go." Piper said as she stepped past him.

He sighed heavily, rolling his eyes a bit. "That's another thing I love about you, you're brave and not worried of possible dangers lurking in the dark…" Nate cut on his pip boy light.

She looked over her shoulder, a devilish smirk on her lips. "Did you just say the L-word?"

Nate swallowed hard, "I, uh… Did I? I think you may have misheard me." He definitely didn't want to toss that word around so early in their relationship.

"I don't know, I'm pretty good at listening." She looked down at a candle that was set up in the tunnel as she walked forward. "It's a skill you achieve when aspiring to be a great reporter."

All of a sudden a bright flash of light washed over them and Nate reached to grab Piper, pulling her back as she gasped in confusion. "Get behind me." He ordered sternly. He raised his hand to shield some of the light from his face, attempting to see in the blinding light. Three people, one of which was sporting a heavy machine gun, stood tall and threateningly in front of them. Nate lowered his hand, his eyes adjusting as he watched the middle figure move forward slightly. A woman with pale skin and a stern look in her eyes, stepped forward, and her voice had a tone of authority as she spoke. "Stopright there."

Natalie exited the power armor at her designated station, sweat coated her body. She rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand to remove some of the sweat. Paladin Danse exited his armor as well. The repair room was empty, everyone was most likely sleeping. "You did excellent." He said as he wiped the sweat from his own brow.

"Thanks." She said with a tired voice. "I don't think I've ever been this tired before." She gave a weak laugh. Danse stared at for her a moment with determination on his face. She looked at him, suddenly feeling self-conscious from the look. "Are you ok?" She asked finally when he averted his eyes, adjusting his stance.

"Yes, I just… wanted to apologize. About my previous behavior regarding your addictions." He looked at the floor, ashamed. "I didn't mean my anger towards you."

She crossed her arms, a thought crossing her mind. "Is Nate making you do this? I'd rather you not give me some half-assed apology."

He looked at her with a bit of surprise, most likely from her harsh words. Most of the time she was quiet and respectable to others, but god was she tired and ready to lay down. She didn't want to have to deal with a guilty apology. "No, Nate didn't tell me to. I wanted to do it myself. I believe I gave you the wrong impression of my feelings towards your situation. I'm not… disgusted by you…" He watched her face as he spoke. "I'm disgusted that you had to go through that. That you were forced into some situation you did not want. So, even if you do not accept it, I apologize for making you feel like less than a person."

Natalie relaxed, feeling a bit of regret at lashing out at him. "Thank you." She said softly.

Danse reached down to grab his bag. "You're really strong, to be able to go through all that and still find the courage to fight. I think that you're a fitting addition to the Brotherhood."

"Thanks, Danse…" She smiled at him.

"Ad Victorium, Knight Graham." He placed his hand across his heart. She mimicked him as he walked off.

She made her way back to her bunk, her weariness growing heavy on her. Really strong, huh? Maybe I do just need to show them I can do things on my own. That I can handle myself. Everyone thinks I can't, but… She stared at the ceiling as she lay comfortably on the bunk, thoughts whirring in her head. Well then, just show 'em.


	24. Chapter 23

Nate rubbed his fingers into his forehead, trying to massage the headache away. "How long has she been gone?" He looked at Maccready, who sat in a chair across from him.

Maccready's foot was shaking nervously, his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep and worry. "I dunno, three days maybe?" he adjusted his position in the chair, putting his palms together as he relaxed to keep from shaking.

"She left the day after us then..." Nate sighed heavily, turning to Piper for confirmation. He returned to share with the group everything that had happened at the railroad. How he managed to find a way to get inside the Institute, all they had to do was build a machine. But now Natalie was gone and no one knew where she could be. The room inside the Boston airport was silent as they tried to think where she could have gone.

"Hancock said she went to fight Winlock and Barnes, so we checked it out. They were dead so I'm guessing she did it... but there were no signs where she could have gone..." Maccready stood up, rubbing the back of his neck. "It was a bloodbath, I thought maybe she was injured... Hancock and I searched the perimeter for hours, no signs of her anywhere."

"Bloodbath?" Nate asked, an eyebrow perked.

Hancock nodded slowly. "Throat of one guy was ripped open, other stabbed straight in the head. A few bodies with missing limbs or were gashed open. Maybe she used the power armor? I dunno. She either cleaned up real well afterwards or found something to keep the blood from smearing everywhere 'cause she left no traces leading to her next spot." Hancock took a hit from his jet, seeming to be deep in thought.

"And you're sure it was Natalie?" Nate asked, doubtful she would be so violent.

"Who else would it be? Unless those gunners really pissed off the wrong group." Maccready crossed his arms, leaning against the table Nate sat on.

Piper cleared her throat, ready to chime in her opinion. "It seems doubtful, don't you think...? Just a little out of character. Not to mention if she's having trouble with withdrawals... There's no way she could take down the whole group."

"She might have gotten help?" Nate suggested. "If anything... Or like Maccready said. Most likely it was another group." Maccready seemed to relax more from Nate agreeing with him.

"Either way, we still need to find her." Maccready said with a look of seriousness. "You guys have a clue where she could be?"

"We didn't see her on the way back here... What about Sanctuary?" Piper suggested.

"It's possible, Preston would make sure to take care of her if she did head out that way." Nate bit into his lip, trying to think. "We should head out there, that's our best chance."

They began to pack up their things, preparing for the long walk to Sanctuary. Nate watched Maccready as he moved slowly, his hands a bit shaky as he prepared his rifle. "Maccready..." Nate called to him. He gave a slight nod, looking at Nate in question. "She's going to be fine, don't worry..."

"Sure, yea..." he cleared his throat. "I'm sure she will be. It was probably just another group, right? They got there before she could, she walked to Sanctuary since it's the closest settlement..." Maccready looked to Nate for a reply. He simply gave a nod, trying to reassure Maccready and put him at ease.

They began to head towards the gate to leave the Boston airport. "Nate!" Danse called out to the group as he saw them walking.

"Paladin," Nate addressed him. "Sorry, I won't be able to stay and help with any missions. We're heading to Sanctuary-"

"Because Natalie is missing. I know, she took her power armor out to the field." Danse brought up a map on his power armor. "It shows she released a distress signal and just recently it's been at a standstill. It's definitely somewhere South of Sanctuary... I can leave a marker on your map and you can scan the location."

"She's probably sitting in Sanctuary right now, Maccready," Hancock gave him a hopeful smile and pat on the back. "Just like we thought."

"Is there a reason you never said anything before this?" Maccready asked with a grunt.

"The information recently came in, and it isn't one hundred percent reliable." Danse replied, "It takes up to a day to process everything. I had Quinlan inform me once everything was received. Once we get more radio towers set up around the Commonwealth we hope to be able to get to our soldiers in a more efficient manner."

When Maccready didn't say anything, a scowl still across his face, Nate spoke up. "Thanks for your help Danse, we know you did what you could."

"Yea, thanks..." Maccready said a bit reluctantly. "We should get going." he began to turn around.

"Take a vertibird." Danse said after a moment. "We may not be able to spare people to help search, but at least the vertibird can help you get there faster." Danse placed his helmet on, preparing to walk away. "Maccready, don't worry." he spoke in a softer tone than usual. "She'll be fine." He reached a closed hand to Mccready, who looked him over hesitantly before reaching out to accept what he had. "Make sure you give this to her if she needs it. For her withdrawals."

"Thanks... Was the information able to show anything as far as that goes?" Maccready asked as he placed the vial in a small pocket on the chest of duster.

"Unfortunately, no." Danse replied. "But I suspect that her health is in at least sustainable condition, for her to have travelled so far." Danse reached a comforting hand towards Maccready. "The Brotherhood is entrusting you to bring our soldier home safely. I have no doubts you'll do so." Maccready looked up at Danse, his previous anger dissipating. "Keep safe," Danse placed his hand across his chest. "Ad Victoriam."

Natalie dug her nails into the ground, the dirt soft and wet under her palms. Where was she? Lost, probably... She did it though, she killed them. She couldn't quite remember how, she just remembered their bodies lying still. Winlock's throat slashed open and Barnes' mouth gaped as the knife was plunged into his forehead. She turned over to her other side, stomach queasy from the thought. The taste of blood lingered in her thoughts and spread to her tongue where she dry heaved. Her legs ached... How long had she been walking?

A gravelly voice spoke in what felt like a whisper. She couldn't make out the words, but something about it sounded familiar.

"What is that?" another voice asked, stern and feminine.

"A person... A girl..." the voice replied, uncertain. "Should we help her?"

"Looks like she was in a fight. She might be a raider." the second voice said.

"What if she's not? What if she's just a traveller and was attacked..." the gravelly voice sought an explanation. Natalie turned her head a bit, her throat and mouth dry as she tried to speak, no words. The shadowy figures hovered near hear.

"You sure seem real concerned about her... You sure she isn't someone you know?"

Natalie wheezed a bit before forcing her voice through "Wa...ter..."

The figures appeared to look at each other a moment before one of them crouched down. A woman dressed in a duster, a mask of some sort hung on her side. "Hey there..." She whispered softly, pulling out a canteen. "You ok?" she gently moved the canteen near Natalie, who weakly attempted to reach for it.

Natalie gulped down the water, her head spinning as she tried to keep her swallowing in time with the flow. "Slow down..." the gravelly voice ordered. "You'll choke yourself."

"What happened to you? Were you attacked?" the female asked as she looked over Natalie. Her hair was cut short with a soft champagne color. She looked rather young, not much older than Natalie most likely. She had a large scar moving diagonally from the corner of her forehead. "Hey, answer me." She spoke sternly.

"No... I a-atta... gunners." Natalie's voice cut in and out. Her vision was clearing up as her mind began to clear from the fog. The woman was with a ghoul who was wearing mismatched pieces of armor. He had no hair and his eyes burned bright blue, almost glowing in the evening darkness. They looked at each other, unsure if to believe Natalie. She coughed, clearing her throat as best she could. "I'm not a raider..." she said with a hoarse voice.

"Where are you heading?" the ghoul asked.

"Sanctuary... It's up North..." Natalie looked down at her hands, covered in mud and blood. She couldn't remember everything, but Sanctuary was definitely the closest place to get help.

The woman looked down at her arm, a pip boy like Nate's was attached. A different model, but looked generally the same. "They get a lot of trading there? Weapons, ammunition... Water?"

"Water!" Natalie gasped out. "Clean water... Can sell... to you." She watched as the woman looked over her pip boy a moment. "Put... location..." Natalie pointed to the machine and then to herself.

"Yea, here's the map." The woman let Natalie look over it just enough to put in what she believed to be where Sanctuary was. "Let me tell you now, if this turns out to be a trap or if you're actually a raider. We will not hesitate to murder you and your entire group." Steel grey eyes stared her down, wisps of champagne hair falling forward as she reached to grab Natalie by the arm. "Zero, keep an eye on her." the woman ordered as she pulled Natalie to her feet. Natalie gripped at her, legs shaky and head beginning to throb.

"Got it, boss." He pulled her ahead of them, his weapon aimed on her back. "You've got no reason to worry as long as you don't lie to us or run away."

"Ok..." Natalie said in almost a whisper. She looked over the ghoul, he was rather tall, but for how short she was that was a normal thing. He barely had to lift his weapon to aim at her properly. She began to walk, legs wobbly but soon she was able to balance herself correctly.

"Here you go," the woman handed her the canteen to drink more water. "It's all purified. Really hard to come by where we're from." She gave a smile that was a stark contrast from her threatening words before. "Zero is my friend and bodyguard. We've been travelling from the South, near the New Vegas Strip, looking to trade some valuables."

"In the Mojave?" Natalie asked after she gulped down water.

"Have you ever been out there? Most of it is desert. Sand and mountains... But if you make it to the strip, there's plenty of trading."

"No, I've never... been." Natalie's voice was slowly coming back. "Are there many people? People that travel back and forth?" What if they somehow ran into Jeff... Although she had no clue what name he would be going by anymore. It was highly unlikely.

"I suppose so... The Strip definitely draws people in. Beliefs that you can gain riches at the push of a button." She rolled her eyes, huffing. "It's all a load of bull if you ask me. All rigged." She paused a moment, eyeing Natalie. "Why do you ask? Planning to take a road trip? Try your hand with lady luck?"

"No, no..." Natalie shook her head, giving a hoarse giggle. "I thought maybe... I'd see an old friend." It was better to leave it at that, rather than go into detail with strangers. Besides, it was better to leave the past in the past. She had Maccready to hold onto now, if he could learn to be more accepting of Natalie's ways... "What are you hoping to trade?"

"Mostly technology. With the CIT building not too far from here I'm hoping to scavenge some information. My employer enjoys tinkering and building things... He hopes to use this technology to benefit the people of the Mojave... Eventually..."

"Kind of reminds me of the Brotherhood-"

"The Brotherhood is out here?" Zero asked, stopping in his tracks. "I thought they resided in the Capital Wastes..."

"They recently set up... Are you enemies of the Brotherhood?" Natalie asked, a bit wide eyed.

"No, no... You just... You know the Brotherhood doesn't like us ghouls running around..." He cleared his throat.

"Yea..." Natalie turned to keep walking. She decided not to continue on about them, just in case they really were enemies. She'd rather them not know her affiliation. "It shouldn't take us long to get to Sanctuary, we should keep moving.


End file.
